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COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 



The Story of the Ages 

from 

Creation to Redemption 

KEY TO 

HISTORIC AND PROPHETIC 

DIAGRAM 

OF 

THE WORLD 

And God's Plan of Salvation for 
Law Breakers 



BY 
J. ELWIN WOODWARD 



Historic and Prophetic Publishing Company. Not Inc. 

741 East 44th Street 
CHICAGO. ILL.. U. S. A. 



&0 



^Vi 



Copyrighted, 1912 

BY 

J. ELWIN WOODWARD 

Entered at Stationers' Haw, 

London, England 

All Rights Reserved 



' >.bl> 



£CI.A319217 



PREFACE 

The * 'Story of the Ages," with the accompanying ' 'Historic 
and Prophetic Diagram of the World," treats of subjects that 
reach back before sin entered any part of the creation of God. 
Then follows briefly the history of the rebellion and fall of 
Satan in heaven ; the disobedience of our first parents in Eden ; 
and the course of sin down through the ages to the end of this 
world, when sin and sinners will be destroyed, the righteous 
redeemed, and the earth again made new. 

While each chapter is complete in itself, each is also closely 
connected with the one before it, and with the one following it,, 
thus making an unbroken chain, which, link by link, and chap- 
ter by chapter, tells the story of creation, the plan of salvation, 
and the joys of redemption. 

In writing this work, the author has confined his evidence 
to the Word of God, as found in the Bible ; to history, which 
records the fulfillment of Bible prophecy; and to true science,, 
which is in harmony with God and nature. 

The author gratefully acknowledges the valuable assistance 
of Mrs. Anna L. Colcord, of Washington, D. C, in the prepara- 
tion of this work for the press. 

The Author. 



- CONTENTS 

PAGE 

An Appeal to the Reader 8 

Value of Ob ject-Lessons 9 

First Cover Described 10 

A Glimpse of the Whole Chart in Brief 11 

Eternity of the Past 11 

Time Line 11 

Historic Diagram 12 

Symbols of Daniel and Revelation 12 

Patriarchal History 13 

The Law of God 13 

Plan of Salvation 13 

Tabernacle and Law 13 

Prophetic Periods 14 

The Eastern Question 14 

The Papacy 14 

Origin of Sunday 14 

Image of the Papacy 14 

The Ten Kingdoms 14 

Symbols of Revelation ,15 

The Millennium 15 

Eternity of the Future 15 

Description of the Chart in Detail 16 

Wonders of the Universe 16 

Immensity of Space 16 

Our Solar System 17 

Center of the Universe : 18 

Bible Astronomy 18 

God Over All 19 

The Three Heavens 19 

Grandeur of the Heavens 20 

Other Worlds Inhabited 20 

French Scientist Says, All Planets Inhabited 23 

Personality of God ." 23 

Man Created in God's Image 24 

God's Habitation or Dwelling Place 25 

The Character of God 26 

Love Manifested in Creation 26 



PAGE 

The Moral Law of God: A Transcript op His Character. 27 

The Seal of God 31 

The Moral Principle in the Sabbath 31 

DroNE Plan of the Ages; or, God's Eternal Purpose. ... 33 

The Plan of Salvation in Eternity 33 

Creation of the Universe and its Inhabitants 36 

All Life From God 37 

The Entrance of Sin Into the Universe 39 

The Creation of Our World 42 

The Literal Week 45 

The Temptation and Fall 48 

The Plan of Salvation in Action 52 

History of the World From Creation to the Flood 54 

Patriarchal History 58 

Bible Description of the Flood 61 

After the Flood 63 

Chaldean Description of the Flood 64 

Another Deluge Tablet 66 

Tower of Babel 67 

The Origin of Nations 69 

The Law of God From Creation to Sinai 70 

The Sabbath Reform in Egypt 71 

The Law Given on Mt. Sinai 74 

The Two Covenants 75 

The New or Second Covenant .\ 80 

The Ceremonial and Moral Law Contrasted 82 

What Men Have Said of the Moral Law 83 

What Men Have Said of the Ceremonial Law 84 

The Law and the Gospel." 85 

The Theocracy of Israel; or, the Kingdom of God on 
Earth 88 

The Babylonian Empire 90 

Daniel, The Prophet 92 

Great Image of Daniel 2 92 

Babylon 92 

Medo-Persia 94 

Grecia 97 



PAGE 

Rome 97 

Rome Divided 98 

The Four Beasts of Daniel 7 99 

Babylon 99 

Medo-Persia 100 

Grecia 101 

Rome .102 

Rome Divided 103 

Three Kingdoms Plucked Up 105 

The Little Horn 106 

The Ram, He-Goat, and Little Horn of Daniel 8 109 

Medo-Persia 109 

Grecia 110 

Grecia Divided Ill 

The Little Horn , . 112 

The Sanctuary and Its Cleansing. . . . .. 113 

A Great Prophetic Period; or, The Twenty-Three Hun- 
dred Days of Daniel 8 :14 , 117 

The Seventy Weeks 119 

The Holy Spirit and His Work .125 

The Third Person of the Godhead 126 

The Personality of the Holy Spirit 126 

The Holy Spirit Divine 127 

The Trinity 127 

The Power and Work of the Holy Spirit 128 

The Holy Spirit and the Creation of the Universe '. 129 

Spurgeon on The Creation of the Universe . 130 

The Holy Spirit Everywhere Present . .130 

Angels and Their Work 131 

The Holy Spirit in the Plan of Salvation 132 

The Holy Spirit in the Old Dispensation 133 

The Fruits of the Holy Spirit , 133 

Announcement of the Birth of John and of Christ . .133 
The Holy Spirit's Connection With the Life of 

Christ , 134 

The Holy Spirit and the Baptism of Christ 134 

The Holy Spirit Christ's Representative on Earth.. 135 

The Holy Spirit in the General Resurrection 136 

Sabbath Reform by Christ 136 

The Crucifixion of Christ ';.» 142 

Christ the Central Figure 146 

The Ascension 147 

The Early Rain; or, The Day of Pentecost 148 



PAGE 

The Great Red Dragon 150 

The Papacy 151 

The Papal Beast Diagram 153 

Development of the Papacy 156 

The Edict of Milan 157 

The Two- Horned Beast; or, The United States in 
Prophecy 160 

The Three Messages of Rev. 14 :6-12 163 

The Second Message 164 

The Third Message 166 

Sabbath Reform in the Last Days 168 

The Image to the Beast 169 

The Supreme Court Decision of 1892 174 

The Mark of the Beast 177 

Sunday, Ancient and Modern 179 

Mohammedanism ; or, The Saracens and Turks .181 

The Latter Rain 185 

Spurgeon on The Latter Rain 187 

Signs of His Coming ' 188 

Falling of the Stars 190 

The Parable of the Fig Tree 192 

The Last Generation 192 

The Second Coming of Christ 193 

First Resurrection .193 

An Anceent Belief. 193 

A Prominent New Testament Doctrine 194 

Manner of His Coming 194 

Testimony of Eminent Divines 195 

The Parting of the Heavens 197 

The Millennium 199 

The Earth Desolate 200 

The Binding of Satan 200 

The Day of Judgment 201 

The Books of Record 203 

The Second Resurrection 205 

The Earth Made New 207 

The New Jerusalem 208 

The Twelve Foundations 209 

The Tree and The River of Life 211 

Conclusion 212 

General Index 215 



AN APPEAL TO THE READER 
WITHOUT EXCUSE 

"We are drawing near to the day of God. The decisions of 
eternity are upon us. The Master standeth at the door. The 
day of the Lord is not an uncertain object in the dim and dis- 
tant future; but it is, to him who reads aright the page of 
prophecy and history, a vivid reality, even now throwing the 
beams of its approaching glory and the light of its consuming 
fires upon a slumbering world. It comes not without a numer- 
ous array of precursors and heralds ; yet it will come to many 
suddenly and unexpectedly. With what real and unfeigned 
surprise will multitudes awake to their condition, as the ter- 
rible realities of this coming day burst upon them. So differ- 
ent from what they expected ! So contrary to all their plans ! 
So fatal to all that they had hoped for or believed! What 
astonishment, what amazement, what terror, will seize them! 
At once they find themselves in the unrelaxing grasp of 
eternity, its irrevocable decisions upon them, and they among 
the lost! And how many, in the agony of their despair, will 
put the question to their own souls, Why should I be found 
in this condition? And what would be their reply to such a 
question"? Should the Judge of all meet them with the solemn 
inquiry why they had not made preparation for that day, what 
answer would they return? What excuse would they render? 

"Would they say that signs should have been given of so 
momentous an event, some strange phenomena in nature to 
mark the approach of the end? The answer would be, Such 
signs were given. The sun was to. be darkened, the moon 
withdraw her shining, the stars fall from heaven, and strange 
sights appear above, and strange convulsions to be felt below. 
And ere probation closed, while yet you could have escaped 
the coming wrath, the land was full of Bibles containing these 
predictions, and full of histories recording their fulfillment. 
Did you care to trouble yourselves to compare the two? And 
again they would stand speechless and condemned." 

— Selected. 

The reader is earnestly invited to study well the following 
pages of prophecy and history. For it will be helpful in 
making that preparation which will enable him to be among 
those who will be ready when that great day shall come with 
all its glorious realities. J. e. w. 

8 



The Story of the Ages 

from 

Creation to Redemption 

VALUE OF OBJECT LESSONS 

' 'Pictured truth is powerful. "—Rev. Robert F. Y. Pierce. 



A diagram is an illustrative outline or drawing, by means 
of which facts and ideas may be conveyed to the mind, through 
the sense of sight, in the clearest, quickest, and most compre- 
hensive manner. 

The value of pictures and drawings, as a means of educa- 
tion and information, is now generally recognized. This is an 
age of pictures. The first page of a daily newspaper, or even 
an ordinary postcard is hardly considered complete today with- 
out some striking cartoon or illustrative picture. 

The eye is the first avenue to the mind. Ideas and facts 1 
can, therefore, be flashed into the mind more easily, more 
quickly, and often with more lasting effect, through the me- 
dium of the eye, than would be possible for them to be through 
the spoken word. Great scenes, as the havoc of war, the de- 
struction of cities, and the results of terrible storms, and devas- 
tating floods, can all be graphically transmitted to the mind, 
by this means, in a moment of time. So, likewise, great truths 
and important lessons are quickly and easily grasped by the 
mind, through the aid of illustrative diagrams, pictures of life, 
and symbolic representations. 

Jesus, the great Teacher, recognized this fact, and frequent- 
ly made use of this means to instruct the people. Much of 
His teaching while on earth was done by the use of parables, 
illustrations, and object lessons, thus bringing to the mind, 
through the eye, or through objects familiar to the eye, the 

9 



10 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

important lessons of truth He wished the people to learn. The 
few words He stooped and wrote upon the sand had more effect 
upon the unfortunate woman's accusers than perhaps many 
more spoken words would have had. "Behold the lilies of the 
field!" exclaimed Jesus, again directing the people's minds, 
through the sense of sight, to the picturesque scene before them, 
from which He taught the beautiful lesson of God's care for 
His children. 

The Holy Spirit also indorses this means of instruction, 
directing the ancient prophet to "WRITE THE VISION, AND 
MAKE IT PLAIN UPON TABLES, THAT HE MAY EUN 
THAT READETH IT." Hab. 2:2. And the same Spirit, in 
inspiring the writing of the books of Daniel and Revelation, 
made use of this medium when it represented the great nations 
of the earth by symbolic beasts of various descriptions. 

In the " Historic and Prophetic Diagram of the World" the 
author, by means of grouping together on one chart the great 
historic outlines and prophetic symbols of the Bible, has endeav- 
ored to present, at one view, God's plan of the ages, and the 1 
entire history of the world. It is intended, therefore, as an aid 
to a correct, intelligent, and comprehensive understanding of 
the Bible, a means by which even those least familiar with the 
Scriptures may grasp, with ease, its wonderful truths. 

TO UNDERSTAND THIS DIAGRAM, OR CHART, 
MEANS TO UNDERSTAND THE GREAT ESSENTIALS OF 
HISTORY AND PROPHECY, LAW AND GOSPEL, TIME 
AND ETERNITY. 

FIRST COVER 

In connection with the study of the diagram it will be inter- 
esting to the reader to take a glance at the first cover page of 
the book. Here, in still briefer form than on the diagram, is 
given an outline of the history of the World from creation to 
redemption. Beginning with creation, and Adam and Eve in 
Eden, is traced, in rapid succession, the great nations of the 
world, as pictured by the three leading prophets of the Bible 
— Moses, Daniel, and John — culminating with the new Jerusa- 
lem, the metropolis of that kingdom which is to supplant all 
other kingdoms, in the earth made new. 



A GLIMPSE OF THE WHOLE 
CHART IN BRIEF 



Extending* back, not only to Eden, but to before Creation 
itself, and coming down the stream of world's events, past our 
own time, and still on into the future, even to the final close* 
of this world's history, the chart gives, in a clear, concise, and 
comprehensive manner, by means of colored diagrams, the lead- 
ing outlines of Scripture prophecies and their historical fulfill- 
ment covering this great and eventful period of time. 

By means of the figures 1 to 30, running from left to right 
at the top and bottom of the chart, and of the letters of the 
alphabet extending from the top to the bottom at either end 
of the chart, any event, date, fact or symbol represented on 
the chart may be readily and definitely located. The dotted 
parallel lines running across and up and down the chart, con- 
nect corresponding figures and letters, as from E to E (left to 
right), or 1 to 1 (top to bottom). 

The ten colored illustrations at the top of the chart, on 
line A, extending from left to right, from A to A, between 1 
and 30, show some of the work of Christ and the Holy Spirit 
in all ages of the world. 

ETERNITY OF THE PAST 

The yellow space at the left of the chart, extending from 
the "View of the Universe" to the bottom between C and Z, 
represents the eternity of the past, before this world was 
created. Line 1 shows that Satan sinned and fell before the his- 
tory of this world began. The narrow black line 3, running up 
and down from B to Z, dividing the yellow space from the main 
body of the chart, is the Creation Line. 

THE TIME LINE 
The black line extending across the chart from P to P, is the 
Time Line, and constitutes the backbone of the chart. From 
this is found the dates of the most important events of the 
world's history. 

On line 0, between 3 and 14, or from Creation to the Chris- 
tian Era, the A. M. — Anno Mundi — dates of the most impor- 

11 



12 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

tant events are given according to the year of the world. Go- 
ing back on line Q, from 14 to 3, the same events appear, but 
Avith the B. C. dates indicated. 

Continuing jon line Q from 14 to 27, which brings us down 
this side of the birth of Christ, are found the greatest his- 
torical events that have occurred from that time to the present. 

As seen by the dates on line 0, between 3 and 8, the his- 
tory of the first three thousand years is very much condensed, 
owing to the fact that but comparatively little is known of 
that period of the world. 

The Time Line P is divided into thousand year periods, by 
short, red bars extending above and below it at certain inter- 
vals. The end of the first thousand year period is where the 
red bar extends above the Time Line P, between 4 and 5, to the 
figure 1000; the second thousand year period ends at the red 
bar on the Time Line, just to the right of line 6 ; and the third 
period of one thousand years ends where the red bar is con- 
nected with the Time Line to the left of line 8. 

From this point on, the scale of the chart is very much 
increased, and continues at about the same proportion, to the 
second coming of Christ, indicated by line 27. The fourth thou- 
sand year period extends from 8 to 14, or to A. D. 1. The end 
of the fifth thousand year period will be found where the red 
bar is connected with the Time Line at line 22, and the sixth 
thousand year period continues from this point down to the 
present, where it is almost finished. 

HISTORIC DIAGRAM 
The Historic Diagram in red and yellow, on lines R and S 
below the Time Line, begins at creation and continues on 
through to the second coming of Christ, at line 27, or to the 
millennium period. This diagram indicates the length of time 
from creation to the flood, between lines 3 and 6, — 1656 years; 
and the duration of the leading nations of the world since that 
time, chief of which are the four great universal monarchies, 
— Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome. The dates of the 
rise and fall of these nations are readily determined by a com- 
parison of the Historic Line with the Time Line. 

SYMBOLS OF DANIEL AND THE REVELATION 
Under the Historic Diagram, on lines T and U, between 
8 and 27, in chronological order, appear the prophetic beast 
symbols of the Scriptures, with their prominent characteris- 
tics brought to view. These beasts represent the great nations 



A GLIMPSE OF THE CHART 13 

of the earth as they appear upon the stage of action, assuming 
the sovereignty of the world and the character of a universal 
power. 

PATRIARCHAL HISTORY 

Beginning at creation, in a green colored diagram, extend- 
ing from T and 3 diagonally down to Z and 8, a number of 
patriarchs are given who were contemporary with each other, 
showing how readily the facts of creation and events that 
•occurred during the first twenty-five hundred years of the 
world's history, were carried by word of mouth from Adam to 
Moses, through only five men, bringing us within less than fif- 
teen hundred years of the birth of Christ. It also shows that 
the lives of three men, — Adam, Methuselah, and Shem, — 
spanned more than half the time from creation to the begin- 
ning of the Christian era. 

THE LAW OF GOD 

The Blue Diagram C, extending from the extreme left to 
the right, or from C to C, represents the law of God. This 
diagram illustrates the eternal duration of the moral law of 
God. It also shows the existence of this eternal law in the 
eternity of the past, the law Oral, the law Written, the law 
Magnified, the law Honored, and the law Eternal in the ages 
to come, through all of which shines the justice and righteous- 
ness of the Eternal Giver of the law. 

Line B shows the Sabbath in eternity, the Sabbath given 
to man in Eden, three of the great Sabbath reform movements 
of history, and the Sabbath in eternity to come. 

PLAN OF SALVATION 

On line D, extending from the extreme left to line 27, is a 
diagram which illustrates the plan of salvation as devised in 
eternity. Rom. 16 :25, R. V. This shows how it will close with 
the three-fold message of Rev. 14 :6-10, as shown between lines 
25 and 27, and C and 1. These together close the gospel to 
this world, — a gospel which, from the first, has been founded 
on God's Word. 

TABERNACLE AND LAW 

On lines J and M, from 4 to 9, is an illustration of the Tab- 
ernacle. Above it is the ark of gold and the two tables of 
stone, on which appear the graven words of the law, — the 
ten commandments. 



14 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

PROPHETIC PERIODS 
On line P, from 11 to 25, is a colored diagram of the 2300 
symbolic days, or literal years, of .the eighth and ninth chap- 
ters of Daniel, beginning at 457 B. C, on line 11, and ending 
at A. D. 1844, on line 25. 

THE EASTERN QUESTION 
On line I, 22 to 27, is another diagram in red, showing the 
rise of Mohammedanism and the development of the Turkish 
empire, which is about to come to its end, ' ' and none shall help 
him.' , 

THE PAPACY 

On line J, 18 to 27, is an illustration in red, cone-shaped,, 
representing the rise and fall of the Papacy in the third and 
fourth centuries, its loss of power, and its final restoration for 
a short period near the end. 

ORIGIN OF SUNDAY 

The history of Sunday is traced by means of a red line,. 
beginning just above the Time Line, at the intersection of 
N and 7. This diagram, starting shortly after the flood, and 
continuing to N, 17, indicates that Sunday was only a 
pagan or heathen festival day dedicated to the sun and con- 
nected with sun worship, until some time after the beginning" 
of the Christian era. At line 17 the diagram is elevated to K, 
19, showing that Constantine and the Catholic bishops exalted 
this heathen day of worship to a Christian Sabbath, about the- 
year A. D. 321. From that time it is brought down to the pres- 
ent, showing it to be the final bond of union, which will bring 
together Catholicism and Protestantism, — the ''beast" and the- 
"image to the beast." (See lines 26 and 27, and I to M.) It 
is thus shown to be the symbol of that religion founded upon 
idolatry and based only on man's word. 

IMAGE OF THE PAPACY 

The territory of the United States, in blue, is found on 

line L, between 24 and 27. In this territory from 25 to 27, is- 

shown in red, the rise of the image of the Papacy in the last 

days. 

THE TEN KINGDOMS 

Rome was divided into ten kingdoms, between the years 
A. D. 351 and 476. This, together with the rise of the Papacy, 
before which three of these kingdoms were "plucked up," is 
clearly represented by a new and forcible diagram on line S,. 
between 17 and 20. 



A GLIMPSE OF THE CHART 15 

SYMBOLS OF REVELATION 

Following in their proper places on the right of the chart, 
below the Historic Diagram, on lines T and U, extending from 
15 to 18 and from 20 to 27, are the prophetic symbols of Reve- 
lation. They represent Rome, the Papacy, the woe trumpets, 
and the United States. Below, on lines X and Y, between 19 
and 27, are engravings of the three angels of Rev. 14:6-10, 
' 'flying in the midst of heaven," and a specially engraved 
representation of the second coming of Christ, accompanied by 
the angelic hosts of heaven. 

THE MILLENNIUM 

The millennium, or the one thousand years between the 
first and second resurrections, is represented by the red space 
between lines 27 and 29, extending from C to Z. At the end 
of this period the wicked are raised to receive their reward, 
after which the earth is dissolved by fire, preparatory to its 
re-creation and restoration to its final Edenic beauty. 

ETERNITY OF THE FUTURE 

The yellow space on the right of the chart, line 30, extend- 
ing from C to Z, stands for the eternity of the future, and 
represents the glorious reign of righteousness, when the whole 
universe will be free from sin and sinners, and the utmost part 
of the creation of God will be resplendent with His glory, — 
"When the glory of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters 
cover the sea." 



DESCRIPTION OF THE CHART 
IN DETAIL 



WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE 

The yellow space on the left of the chart, extending from 
C to Z, stands not only for the eternity of the past, but for an 
infinite and eternally open universal space in which floats the 
wonderful creation of God. A few features of this wonder- 
ful creation are here briefly set forth. 

IMMENSITY OF SPACE 

The earth on which we dwell is but a mere speck, a grain 
of sand on the seashore, a drop in the infinite ocean of space, 
when compared with the wonderful universe of which we are 
a part. As stated by Camille Flammarion, in his " Wonders 
of the Heavens," pages 17 and 18, universal space is a vast 
"expanse without limits, without shores, illimited, infinite,'' 
and has "neither dome, nor vaults, nor limits of any kind," 
and is "void in every direction." 

In order that the mind may get some conception of this 
shoreless ocean of space, we give the following illustration from 
the same author : 

"Allow me then, by a figure of speech, to tell you that we 
will place ourselves on a ray of light and be carried away on 
its rapid course. 

"Taking the earth as our starting-point, we will go in a 
straight line to any point of the heavens. We start. At the 
end of the first second, we have already traversed 186,000 
miles; at the end of the second, 372,000. We continue. Ten 
seconds, a minute, ten minutes have elapsed, — 111,600,000 
miles have been passed. Passing, during an hour, a day, a 
week, without ever slackening our pace, — during whole months, 
and even a year, the time which we have traversed is already 
so long, that expressed in miles, the number of measurement 
exceeds our faculty of comprehension, and indicates nothing to 
our mind : they would be trillions, and millions of millions. But 
we will not interrupt our flight. Carried on without stopping 
by the same rapidity of 186,000 miles each second, let us pene- 
trate the expanse in a straight line for whole years, fifty years, 
even a century. . . . Where are we? For a long time we 
have gone beyond the last starry regions which are seen from 

16 



WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE 17 

the earth, the last that the telescope has visited; for a long 
time we travel in other regions, unknown and unexplored. No 
mind is capable of following the road passed over; thousands 
of millions joined to thousands of millions express nothing: 
at the sight of this prodigious expanse the imagination is ar- 
rested, humbled. . . . We should be able to guide our- 
selves in any part of space, left, right, forward, backward, 
above, below, in every direction; and when after centuries 
employed in this giddy course, we should stop ourselves fasci- 
nated, or in despair before the immensity eternally open, eter- 
nally renewed; we should again understand that our secular 
flights had not measured for us the smallest part of space, and 
that we were not more advanced than at our starting-point. 
In truth, it is the infinite which surrounds us, as we before 
expressed it, or the infinite number of worlds. We should be 
able to float for eternity without ever finding anything before 
us but an eternally open infinite." 

In this infinite space, the unfathomable extent of which, as 
just shown, we are but faintly able to comprehend, is found 
the wonderful creation of God. 

While the wisest astronomers of modern times, with the 
most powerful, up-to-date telescopes, have revealed many 
things pertaining to this vast creation, yet we have reason to 
believe that there is no more comparison between what has 
been revealed and what actually exists, than there is between 
the finite and the infinite mind. 

OUR SOLAR SYSTEM 

Our sun, nine hundred thousand miles in diameter, or three 
hundred and fifty-two thousand times larger than the earth, 
is the center of our solar system. Around the sun are revolv- 
ing eight planets, of which the earth is* one. 

It is now a well demonstrated fact, that our sun, with its 
accompanying planets, is only one of a great number of suns 
with like planets revolving around each of them. It is also a 
fact that groups of these suns, with their planetary systems 1 , 
similar to our own, revolve around other larger suns, and that 
groups of these larger groups revolve around still larger suns, 
and so on, until the whole created universe throughout the 
immensity of space REVOLVES AROUND ONE CENTRAL 
POINT, THE THRONE OF GOD. This thought of the con- 
struction of the universe has been thus expressed by another: 
"From satellite neighborhoods we have risen to planet neigh- 
borhoods; and now, from these, we have evidently risen to 
grand solar neighborhoods, where orbed suns go grandly wheel- 



18 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

ing about suns, carrying with them in inseparable union their 
glittering retinues." 

CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE 

The idea of God being in the center of the universe is both 
beautiful and consistent. In speaking of this, an eloquent 
writer has said: 

"But is there not something . . . which invites us to 
believe that that which would be so fitting and beautiful is also 
triumphantly actual, namely, that at the center of this august 
totality of revolving orbs and firmaments — at once the center 
of gravity, the center of motion, and the center of government 
to all — is that better country, even the heavenly, where reigns 
in glory everlasting the Supreme Father and Emperor of 
Nature, the capital of creation ; the one spot that has no mo- 
tion, but basks in majestic and perfect repose while beholding 
the ponderous materialism which it ballasts in course of circu- 
lation about it? All hail, central heaven! All hail, innermost 
Sun Palace and Celestial Alhambra ! All hail, believers ' Last 
Home!" 

Another writer, while speaking of the wonderful privileges 
that are to be enjoyed by those that shall be redeemed from 
the earth, brings out this same thought as follows,— 

"All the treasures of the Universe will be open to the study 
of God's redeemed. Unfettered by mortality, they wing their 
tireless flight to worlds afar, — worlds that thrilled with sorrow 
at the spectacle of human woe, and rang with songs of glad- 
ness at the tidings of a ransomed soul. With unutterable 
delight the children of earth enter into the joy and the wisdom 
of unf alien beings. They share the treasures of knowledge 
and understanding gained through ages upon ages in contem- 
plation of God's handiwork. With undimmed vision they gaze 
upon the glory of creation,— SUNS AND STARS AND SYS- 
TEMS, ALL IN THEIR APPOINTED ORDER CIRCLING 
THE THRONE OF THE DEITY. 

BIBLE ASTRONOMY. 

The following Scriptures plainly tell us who it was that 
created all these systems of worlds and suns, and holds them 
in balance as they are revolving around the throne of God : 

Isaiah 40 :26 says : ' ' Lift up your eyes on high, and behold 
who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by 
number : He calleth them all by names by the greatness of his 
might, for that He is strong in power; not one faileth." 
"Praise ye the Lord. . . . Praise ye Him, all His angels; 
praise ye Him ; all His hosts. Praise ye Him, sun and moon : 
praise Him, all ye stars of light, . . . for He commanded, 
and they were created." Ps. 148:1-5. "The heavens de- 



WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE 19 

clare the glory of God ; and the firmament showeth His handi- 
work." Ps. 19:1. "Thou, even Thou, art Lord alone: 
Thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their 
host." Neh. 9:6. The Psalmist, in speaking of the sun, says: 
"His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and His cir- 
cuit unto the ends of it." Ps. 19 :6. 

As already described, there are sun systems where suns go 
grandly wheeling about suns. It is in one of these systems 
that we find Arcturus, a grand central sun, which shines with 
the light of four hundred and sixteen suns like ours. And here 
again the Bible proves the truthfulness of the science of astron- 
omy. In Job 38:32, we read: "Canst thou guide Arcturus 
with his sons?" The revised version uses the word "train" in 
place of "sons," either of which proves that- Arcturus, with 
his great family, or train of suns, is being guided through 
space as they all travel together around another larger and 
more powerful sun. 

GOD OVER ALL 

The Bible shows that God sees, directs, and controls all 
His works. ' ' The Lord looketh from heaven . . . from the 
place of His habitation. He looketh upon all the inhabitants 
of the earth." Ps. 33:13, 14. "The Lord is in His holy 
temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven." Ps. 11:4. "The 
Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens; and His king- 
dom ruleth over all." Ps. 103:19. 

THE THREE HEAVENS 

There are three heavens mentioned in the Scriptures. First, 
the atmospheric heavens, described in Genesis 1:8, 20, where 
the birds fly. Second, the starry plane, or the space above our 
atmosphere where the stars and suns are to be seen. Gen. 26 :4. 
In Isaiah 13:10 we read of the "stars of heaven and the con- 
stellations thereof." THE THIRD HEAVEN IS THE CEN- 
TER OF THE UNIVERSE WHERE GOD DWELLS. Paul, in 
2 Cor. 12 :2-4, speaks of being ' ' caught up to the third heaven, ' ' 
"into paradise," where he "heard unspeakable words." Prom 
Rev. 2:7 and 22:1, 2, we learn that the tree of life is in the 
"midst of the paradise of God," and that this tree spans the 
river of life which proceeds "out of the throne of God." As 
God is on His throne, we see, therefore, that paradise is the 
third heaven, or the dwelling place of God. 



20 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

GRANDEUR OF THE HEAVENS 

Camille Flammarion speaks of "celestial globes, illuminated 
by many suns, of all magnitudes, lights and colors, and by 
moons with many colored discs." In the beautiful system of 
Andromeda there are two suns, one an orange, and the other 
an emerald green. Hercules likewise has one red and one 
green sun, 

Upon the subject of moons, Flammarion says that they are 
"suspended in the heavens, like an immense fruit. A ruby 
moon, an emerald moon, an opal moon, — what heavenly jew- 
elry!" Writing on the beauty of distant universes, in "Won- 
ders of the Heavens, ' ' page 126, he continues : 

"What a variety of light with two suns, one red and the 
other green, or one yellow and the other blue, must be experi- 
enced on a planet which revolves around one or the other; 
and what charming contrasts, and what magnificent alterna- 
tions must arise from a red day and a green day, succeeded 
in turn with a white day ! . . . What unimaginable beauty 
clothes with unknown splendor, these distant lands scattered 
in endless space ! ' ' 

"The people inhabiting the planets in the solar system of 
Gamma," it is said, "have no need of electricity, gas, oil, or 
other kinds of artificial light. In those favored worlds they 
have continuous daylight, and probably have no idea of a 
land like ours, which is alternately bathed in sunlight and 
plunged in darkness. The Gammanean planets are so situ- 
ated that as soon as one of their suns begins to decline in the 
west another appears in sight, lighting up the eastern horizon. 
Each of these three suns is of a different color, — red, yellow} 
and blue." 

Steele, in his "Fourteen Weeks in Astronomy," page 267, 
says : "Every tint that blooms in the flowers of summer, flames 
out in the stars at night. ' The rainbow flowers of the footstool, 
and the starry flowers of the throne,' proclaim their common 
Author, while rainbow, flowers, and stars alike evince the same 
Divine love of the beautiful." 

OTHER WORLDS INHABITED 

The Bible plainly indicates God's purpose in creating this 
world. In Isaiah 45 :18 we read : ' ' Thus saith the Lord that 
created the heavens, God Himself that formed the earth and 
made it ; He hath established it, He created it not in vain, He 
formed it to be inhabited. ' ' This being so, it is but reasonable 
to suppose that other worlds were created for the same pur- 



WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE 21 

pose. The conclusion thus arrived at is in harmony with the 
principle laid down by Paul, in Romans 1 :20, w T here he says : 
"The invisible things of Him from the creation of the world 
are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are 
made." That is, those things which we can not see, may be 
understood by those things which we can see. 

And that there are other worlds beside ours, the Scriptures 
plainly state. Thus, in Heb. 1:1, 2, we read: "God, who at 
sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto 
the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto 
us by His Son, Whom He hath appointed heir of all things, 
by Whom also He MADE THE WORLDS.' ' 

This truth may also be learned from the parable of the lost 
sheep. In coming to this world, Christ said He came to seek 
and to save the lost. This world, therefore, is the lost sheep 
for which the good Shepherd left the ninety and nine other 
worlds — or ninety-nine per cent — that had not strayed, but 
were safe in the fold. 

The Scriptures, in speaking of 'the other planets, used the 
term "heavens" instead of "worlds." We can see why this 
is so. While dwelling on the earth, we are living in the atmos- 
pheric heaven that surrounds it. This we believe to be the 
same with all the inhabited worlds. By taking this view of 
the subject, we can readily understand the following Scripture 
in Rev. 12:12, "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that 
dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth . . . for 
the devil is COME DOWN UNTO YOU." Thus we see that 
there are people, or inhabitants, living somewhere above us 
in places called HEAVENS (OR WORLDS), who experience 
the same emotions that we do. From the above Scripture, we 
conclude that the devil had been annoying them, and the time 
had come for rejoicing as he was to leave them, and COME 
DOWN TO THE INHABITANTS OF THIS EARTH, "because 
he knoweth that he hath but a short time." 

Satan was permitted to visit other worlds, but could have 
no influence upon the inhabitants otherwise than to annoy 
them, for sin has never entered any other world than this. 

In Neh. 9 :6, we find still further proof that other worlds are 
inhabited. "Thou, even Thou art Lord alone: Thou hast made 
heaven, the HEAVEN OF HEAVENS, with all their host, the 
earth, and all things that are therein . . . and Thou pre- 
served them all, and the HOST OF HEAVEN WORSHIP- 



22 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

PETH THEE." Without doubt, the "HOST" here spoken of, 
IS THE INHABITANTS OF ALL THE WORLDS as they 
worship their Creator. Again in .Ps. 103:19, 21, 22, we 
read: "The Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens, 
and His kingdom ruleth over all. Bless ye the Lord, all ye 
His hosts, ye ministers of His, that do His pleasure. Bless 
the Lord, all His works in ALL PLACES OF HIS DOMIN- 
ION. ' ' Thus we see that all the hosts, ministers or inhabitants 
of all the worlds, in all places of His dominion, are offering 
praise and glory to their King, whose kingdom ruleth over 
them all. 

Modern astronomers likewise recognize this truth. Flam- 
marion, in "Wonders of the Heavens," pages 274, 279, 281, 
in speaking of Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter, says : 

' ' On these planets, as on our own, the generous rays of the 
sun pour forth heat and light ; on them, as here, years, months, 
and days succeed each other, drawing with them the seasons 
which, from time to time, support the conditions of existence. 
On them, as here, a transparent atmosphere envelops the inhab- 
ited surface with a protecting climate. . . . On them, as 
here, vaporous clouds rise from the ocean with the deep waves, 
and spreading themselves under the heaven, carry dew to the 
parched-up regions. This great movement of life which circu- 
lates over the earth, is not confined to this little planet; the 
same causes develop elsewhere the same effects. . . . 
Hence, it follows that the habitability and habitation of thei 
planets are a necessary complement to their existence. . . . 
Thus it is, that, under whatever aspect we regard creation, the 
doctrine of the plurality of inhabited worlds is formed and 
presented as the only explanation of the final end — as the justi- 
fication of the existence of material forms — as the crowning of 
astronomical truths. ' ' 

Speaking of Jupiter, the same author says : 

1 'This planet is a charming one, so far at least as we are 
able to judge from afar, and without going there . . . A 
continual spring rejoices its surface . . . No winters, no 
summers, always spring . . . We ought, then, not to doubt 
that such an empire has been formed to serve as an abode for 
a human family, venerable and worthy of our respect." — 
"Wonders of the Heavens," page 174. 

Prof. Schiaparelli, an Italian astronomer, says: "I am con- 
vinced of the habitability of Mars. My conviction on that 
point is based on many other things than simple observation. ' ' 

In the Chicago American, Sept. 11, 1902, the following 
statement was given: 

"After a lifetime spent in observation of the heavenly 
bodies, Prof. Geo. W. Hough, head of the Department of 
Astronomy at the Northwestern University, announced his be- 



WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE 23 

lief yesterday, that Mars, Mercury, and Venus, as well as mil- 
lions of other planets outside of this solar system, ABE IN- 
HABITED: . . . that Mars, Mercury, and Venus in par- 
ticular, ARE THOUSANDS OF YEARS IN ADVANCE of the 
human race IN POINT OP CIVILIZATION." He also ex- 
pressed the belief "that of the two million stars which are at 
present known to astronomy, a majority act as suns to various 
solar systems in which there are hundreds of inhabited planets. 
I believe that the Creator did not place all those stars in the 
heavens for nothing . . . After a lifetime spent in study- 
ing the heavenly bodies, I can only begin to realize what a 
small thing is man." 

FRENCH SCIENTIST INSISTS ALL PLANETS ARE INHABITED 

Los Angeles, Cal., Aug. 29. — "Most marvelous is the theory 
held by Comte A de la Baume Pluvinel regarding the existence 
of intelligent life on the various planets of the solar system: 
The Count made known his theory at the gathering of world- 
renowned scientists at Pasadena today. It astounds. It over- 
reaches the Martian controversy, outclasses the Mars- Venus 
double theory and wanders away into space to touch billions 
of planets revolving about 100,000,000 fixed stars we know 
about. It does this and then implies that other millions of fixed 
stars or suns we know not of, are centers of solar systems as 
great or greater than that of which the earth is a part, and 
that the planets of these solar systems ARE INHABITED." 
— Chicago Examine^ Aug. 30, 1910. 

PERSONALITY OF GOD 

From every standpoint from which we may consider the 
subject, the great Creator of the universe must be a personal 
being. To come to any other conclusion would involve us in a 
denial of the following things : the Father and Son, a personal 
Saviour, the holy angels, the personality of the devil, the per- 
sonality of the inhabitants of other worlds, and last, but not 
least, our own personality, as the Word of God plainly de- 
clares that man was made in the image and likeness of his 
Creator. So the fact that we are personal beings is a positive 
proof of the personality of God. It would also involve a 
denial of many other declarations of the Word of God. 

It is true, as the Scriptures state, that "no man hath seen 
God at any time," and that, while in sin, no man can see God 
and live (John 1 :18 ; Ex. 33 :20) ; but we must not conclude 
from this that God is not a personal Being, and that He can 
not be seen. Micaiah, speaking of what he had seen in vision, 
said: "I saw the Lord [in vision] sitting on His throne, and 



24 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

all the hosts of heaven standing by Him on His right hand 
and on His left." 1 Kings 22:19. The prophet Isaiah also 
bears this positive testimony: "In the year that King Uzziah 
died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, 
and His train filled the temple." Isa. 6:1. He also saw 
seraphim, which are a high order of angels. David said, "The 
Lord is in His holy temple" (Ps. 11:4) ; and that "He sitteth 
between the cherubim. ' ' Ps. 99 :1. Many such testimonies can 
be found in the Old Testament Scriptures, while in the New, 
the evidence is fully as clear and convincing. The Saviour 
said, "Verily, verily I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see 
heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending 
upon the Son of man. ' ' John 1 :51. Stephen, ' ' full of the Holy 
Ghost, looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory 
of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, 
Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man stand- 
ing on the right hand of God." Acts 7 :55, 56. 

MAN CREATED IN GOD'S IMAGE 

At the creation God said to Christ, "Let us make man in 
our image, after our likeness ... So God created man in 
His own image, in the image of God created He him, male and 
female created He them." Gen. 1:26, 27. Man then bore the 
image of God both morally and physically. After man sinned, 
we read that Adam "begat a son in his likeness, after his 
image, and called his name Seth." Gen. 5:3. Here is an ex- 
planation of the words "image" and "likeness." As Seth 
bore the physical and moral nature of Adam, so Adam borei 
the same likeness of God. The image of God which man bore 
was not a myth, for the Bible tells us that the Lord has parts 
the same as the human body. For instance, the prophet says, 
His "garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head 
like the pure wool." Dan. 7:9. David declares that "his 
eyes behold, his eyelids try the children of men. ' ' Ps. 11 :4. 
When telling the Israelites of their murmuring toward God, 
Moses said, "Ye have wept in the ears of the Lord." Num. 
11:18. Again David says, "Bow down Thine ear, Lord, 1 
hear me." Ps. 86:1. The Lord, speaking through Isaiah con- 
cerning the wicked, says, "These are a smoke in My nose." 
Isa. 65:5. While of Noah's offering, we read, "And the Lord 
smelled a sweet savor." Gen. 8:21. 

Other parts of the Lord are mentioned, such as, His face 



WONDERS OF THE UNIVERSE 25 

(Isa. 59 :2 ; Ex. 33 :20) ; mouth (Num. 12 :8) ; back part and 
hand. (Ex. 33:23). 

GOD'S HABITATION OR DWELLING PLACE 

God said to Moses, "Let them make Me a sanctuary, that 
I may dwell among them." Ex. 25:8. He could not dwell 
among Israel unless they built Him a sanctuary. They had 
been in Egypt where, in common with the Hindus, the belief 
was entertained that God was in cats and dogs, in cattle, in 
the Nile, and in everything that had life. This was the old, 
mystic, pantheistic idea. They reasoned that as God was the 
author of life, and as life was in all things, so all the God 
there was, pervaded all nature, both animate and inanimate. 
They believed that there was no personal God in heaven, but 
that God was everywhere and nowhere in particular. Thus 
to impress upon the minds of the Israelites that He was a 
person, and had a dwelling place, and that the dwelling place 
was in heaven, and that their salvation depended upon their 
believing this, God said, "Let them make Me a sanctuary, that 
I may dwell among them." One year was occupied in build- 
ing this sanctuary in the wilderness, with special instructions 
that it should be made according to the pattern shown in the 
mount. By this, they learned that God was a personal being, 
having a literal, personal dwelling place in the sanctuary 
in heaven, of which the earthly was a pattern. Paul, speak- 
ing of the heavenly sanctuary, said : ' ' Now of the things which 
we have spoken, this is the sum. We have such an High 
Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the 
Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of 
the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched and not man." 

The sanctuary built by Moses was a representation of the 
dwelling place of Jehovah. It contained two apartments; in 
the inner apartment was the ark, in which rested the law of 
God. The covering of the ark consisted of the mercy seat, with 
two cherubim stretching their wings over the law of God, 
between which was the glorious shekinah, showing the dwelling 
place of God in the heavenly sanctuary. Ex. 25 :8 ; 17-22 ; 26 ; 33, 
34; Rev. 4:1-3. This was the belief of each true prophet who 
lived on this earth, for God always gave His prophets a view 
of His dwelling place while He was seated upon the throne in 
the sanctuary. The throne was not of gold or silver, neither of 
ivory nor diamonds, but was a living throne which moved 
wherever God desired to go. 



26 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THE CHARACTER OF GOD 

The- foundation principle of the character of the great 
God, the Architect and Builder of the universe, the Creator 
of all, is found in the last of these three words: "God is love." 
1 John 4:16. It contains a revelation of God, far beyond the 
power of men and angels to fully comprehend. To be con- 
tinually learning more of His character, will be the desire, 
ambition, and pleasure of the redeemed throughout eternity. 
As God is continually revealing His character of love, it will 
be the never-ceasing wonder and admiration of all the in- 
habitants of the universe, as long as the ceaseless ages of 
eternity roll. Love must, therefore, be the controlling char- 
acteristic of the mind of God, the one attribute of the Deity 
from which all other attributes come. The Scriptures do not 
say, "God is power;" they say, "He is powerful," "He is 
almighty;" but they do say, "God is love." 

In Ex. 34 :6, 7, we have a good description of the character 
of God. "And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, 
The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, 
and abundant in goodness and truth. Keeping mercy for thou- 
sands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin." 

LOVE MANIFESTED IN CREATION 

As God has given to His created intelligences, emotions 
like His own, but in a limited degree, therefore we can get 
some conception of how infinite love is manifested in creation, 
by seeing a manifestation of love in the nature of man. While 
we are living in a sin-cursed world, some traces of the God- 
given nature of love still remains, so much so that men of the 
world spend much time and millions of money each year in 
trying to make others happy. Expensive palaces, beautiful 
gardens, and lovely parks are continually, being made for the 
purpose of gladdening the hearts of mankind. 

The desire on the part of unselfish mortals to make others 
happy IS BUT A REFLECTION OF THE DIVINE CHAR- 
ACTER. The greatest pleasure a mother has, is in caring for 
and seeing her children happy and enjoying themselves; and 
the great Creator, who endowed His creatures with such 
attributes, has them Himself, but in an infinitely greater and 
more perfect degree. 

Thus do we get a little glimpse of the infinite love that 
is expressed in the grandeur of the universe and in the created 
intelligences whom God has made to inhabit it. While the 



THE MORAL LAW OF GOD 27 

joy of the created beings is great, the joy of the Creator must 
be vastly greater because, coupled with the pleasure He re- 
ceives from reviewing the works of His hands, is the delight 
He takes in seeing His creatures happy and enjoying them- 
selves. 



THE MORAL LAW OF GOD 

A TRANSCRIPT OF HIS 

CHARACTER 

On the upper left-hand corner of the chart, at the intersec- 
tion of lines 1 and C, will be found a diagram in blue, called 
the "Law Eternal." Above this diagram are the words, "Sab- 
bath in Eternity. ' ' Both of these expressions refer to the fact 
that God's eternal moral law of ten commandments, of which 
the fourth or Sabbath commandment is a part, is a transcript 
of His character. The law of God must be a transcript of His 
character, as it would be inconceivable for God to make a law 
that was not in harmony with His character. 

The perfect harmony existing between God's character and 
His law may be seen by a comparison of parallel texts relat- 
ing to each, as shown in the following: 

GOD IS HOLY LAW IS HOLY 

1 ' Ye shall be holy, for I the ' ' Wherefore the law is 

Lord your God am holy. ' ' holy, and the commandments 

Lev. 19 :2. holy. ' ' Rom. 7 :12. 

GOD IS PERFECT LAW IS PERFECT 

"Be ye . . . perfect even "The law of the Lord is 

as your Father which is in perfect, converting the soul." 
heaven is perfect. ' ' Matt. 5 :48. Ps. 19 :7. 

GOD IS RIGHTEOUS LAW IS RIGHTEOUS 

"The Lord is righteous in "All thy commandments 

all his ways." are righteousness." 

Ps. 145:17. Ps. 119:172. 

GOD IS TRUTH LAW IS TRUTH 

"0 Lord God of truth." "Thy law is the truth." 

Ps. 31:5. Ps. 119:142. 

GOD IS ETERNAL LAW IS ETERNAL 

"The eternal God is thy "All His commandments 

refuge." . . . stand fast forever and 

Deut. 33:27. ever." Ps. 111:7, 8. 



28 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

GOD IS UNCHANGEABLE LAW IS UNCHANGEABLE 

''For I am the Lord, I "One jot or one tittle shall 

change not. " in no wise pass from the law. ' ' 

Mai. 3:6. Matt 5:18. 

GOD IS LOVE LAW IS LOVE 

"God is love. " "Love is the fulfilling of 

1 John 4:8. the law." Rom. 13:10. 

The two texts, "Ye shall be holy," and "Be ye perfect," 
show that God would have us without sin, and reflect in our 
lives His divine perfection. 

In Matt. 6 :9, 10 we read these words : ' ' Our Father which 
art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, 
Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven." As it is the 
desire of God that the inhabitants of this world do His will 
the same as do the inhabitants of heaven, we must conclude 
two things: first, that it is His desire that the inhabitants of 
each world He had created, comply with these same require- 
ments; and, secondly, that some law must be given whereby 
all His morally responsible creatures may know what His will 
is. In Rom. 2 :17, 18, we learn where His will is to be found. 
"Behold, thou art called a Jew, and resteth in the law. . . . 
AND KNOWEST HIS WILL, . . . being INSTRUCTED 
OUT OF THE LAW." The Jews, therefore, learned the will 
of God by the study of His law. THIS IS, WITHOUT 
DOUBT, TRUE WITH ALL CREATED INTELLIGENCES. 

The created beings could not read the mind of their 
Creator ; thus it became necessary for God to bring out every 
attribute of His character in the form of the moral law for 
the government of all His creatures, in order that, by the 
study of this law, and the aid of the Spirit of God, they might 
form characters in harmony with their Creator. 

THIS LAW, REFLECTING THE CHARACTER OF GOD, 
must of necessity embody every moral principle, and be uni- 
versal in its nature. It must be well fitted for the moral 
government of all morally accountable beings, in any part 
of His vast creation, whether in this one fallen world, or in 
other worlds that have never come under the dominion of sin. 
It is the foundation of His government in heaven as well as 
upon earth. 

THE LAW OF GOD, being a revelation of His will, a tran- 
script of His character, MUST FOREVER ENDURE. "For- 
ever, Lord, Thy word is settled in heaven." Ps. 119:89. "All 



THE MORAL LAW OF GOD 29 

Thy commandments are sure. They stand fast forever and 
ever." Ps. 111:7, 8. 

From the foregoing statements we must conclude that all 
intelligences in heaven, on the earth, and in every other part 
of the universe, are all amenable to the same law. As the 
apostle in Eph. 4:5, 6 says there is "one Lord, one faith, and 
one baptism," so there can be but one moral law. As there 
is but one God, there could be but one transcript of His mind, 
or one law; and the law of God being perfect, could not be 
limited in its adaptation or jurisdiction. IF IT WERE 
LIMITED IN ANY RESPECT, SO THAT IT WOULD NOT 
BE APPLICABLE AT ALL TIMES OR TO ANY PART OF 
THE UNIVERSE, IT WOULD NOT BE PERFECT. 

If there were one moral code for one world, and a different 
code for another, the two codes would not agree. And it would 
be impossible to have two perfect codes. 

God is infinite in all His ways, and in thus laying the 
foundation principles for the moral government of the uni- 
verse, He laid them deep enough and broad enough to cover 
all time and all conditions. 

The following Scriptures prove conclusively that angels are 
amenable to the law of God: "WHOSOEVER committeth sin, 
transgresseth also the law, for sin is the transgression of the 
law." 1 John 3:4. "He that committeth sin is of the devil, 
for the devil sinneth from the beginning." 1 John 3:4, 8. 
Jesus, speaking to the Pharisee, said, "Ye are of your father, 
the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a 
murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, 
because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, 
he speaketh of his own, for he is a liar and the father of it." 
John 8:44. Here we have a plain statement that Satan, the 
fallen angel, had broken two of the commandments of the 
law of God. 

Ezekiel, the prophet, speaking of the devil, says, "Thou 
hast been in Eden the garden of God, every precious stone was 
thy covering . . . Thou art the anointed cherub that 
covereth . . . Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the 
day thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. . . . 
and thou hast sinned." Eze. 28:13-16. 

Then if Satan and the angels that "kept not their first 
estate," sinned, they must have transgressed the law of God. 
In proof that the good angels keep the commandments, we 
have this statement in Ps. 103:20: "Bless the Lord, YE HIS 



30 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

ANGELS that excel in strength, that DO HIS COMMAND- 
MENTS. " 

What others have said of the eternal and universal nature 
of the law of God : 

C.H.Spurgeon, in his sermon on "The Perpetuity of the Law 
of God," or ten commandments, says: "The law of God must 
be perpetual. There is no abrogation of it, nor amendment 
of it. It is not to he toned down or adjusted to our fallen 
condition; but every one of the Lord's righteous judgments 
abideth forever. ... If any suppose that the law of love 
is an adaptation of the moral law to man's fallen condition 
[only], they greatly err. . . . For God to alter His law [at 
any time, or to meet any condition], would be an admission 
that He made a mistake at first. . . . The law of God must 
be perpetual from its very nature; for does it not strike you! 
the moment you think of it that right must always be right, 
truth must always be truth, [in whatever age you are, or in 
whatever part of the universe you are] and purity must always 
be purity? . . .. The law of the Lord must stand, for it is 
perfect, and therefore has in it no element of decay or change. 
. . . The law is absolutely complete, and you can neither 
add to it nor take from it. 'For whosoever shall keep the 
whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.' 
. . . If then no part of it can be taken down, it must stand, 
and stand forever. "—Pages 278-284. 

Another writer has said : ' ' The law of God in the sanctuary 
in Heaven is the great original, of which the precepts in- 
scribed upon the tables of stone, and recorded by Moses in the 
Pentateuch, were an unerring transcript. . . . The law of 
God, being a revelation of His will, a transcript of His char- 
acter, must forever endure, 'as a faithful witness in heaven/ 
Not one command has been annulled, not a jot or tittle has been 
changed. Says the Psalmist, "Forever, Lord, Thy word is set- 
tled in Heaven.' 'All His commandments are sure. They 
stand fast forever and ever.' " Ps. 119:89; 111:7, 8.— "Great 
Controversy," page 434. 

"The moral law contained in the ten commandments 
. . . never can be broken, (but) 'stands fast as the faithful 
witness in heaven' . . . Every part of this law must re- 
main in force ... in all ages, . . . not depending 
either on time or place."— John Wesley, Sermons, Vol. 1, Ser- 
mon 25. 



THE MORAL LAW OF GOD 31 

"The law given upon Sinai . . . was a revelation to 
earth of the law of heaven.' ' . . . "Before this earth was 
called into being, GOD'S LAW EXISTED. Angels are gov- 
erned by its principles, and in order for earth to be in harmony 
with heaven, man also must obey the divine statutes. To 
man in Eden, Christ made known the precepts of the law." — 
"Mount of Blessing," pages 68, 71. 

"The moral law . . . is founded on the nature of God ; 
and cannot be changed; it is of universal application." — Mar- 
tin Luther, "Shorter Catechism," Ed. 1834. 

THE SEAL OF GOD 

In Rev. 7 :2, the seal of God is spoken of as follows: "And 
I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal 
of the living God ; ' ' and in 1 Kings 21 :8, we read that King 
Ahab's wife "wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them 
with his seal." A seal is used to show authorship, authority, 
and jurisdiction; hence, any law or legal document sent out 
to the subjects of a kingdom, in order to be authoritative, must 
bear the king's seal. Not only in olden times was the seal 
a sign of power and authority, but it is such also at the pres- 
ent time. 

As a law is of no force without a seal, and as the great 
King of the universe has a universal moral law, for the gov- 
ernment of His moral creatures, we must therefore look to His 
law to find His seal. 

A seal must show three things, — the name of the law-giver, 
his authority, or right to rule, and the territory under his 
jurisdiction. For instance, the seal of the United States under 
its first president was, first, the name, — • ' George Washington ; ' ' 
second, the authority, — "President;" and third, the territory, — 
the "United States." The fourth, or Sabbath commandment, 
is the only one of the ten that shows all three of these things. 
In this is found the name of the one who gave this law, — 
"God;" His authority, — "Creator;" and His territory, — 
"heaven and earth," or the whole universe. The fourth com- 
mandment of the decalogue, therefore, contains the seal of 
the living God. 

THE MORAL PRINCIPLE IN THE SABBATH 

As moral precepts arise from natural principles which 
have to do with the rights that exist between intelligent 
beings, it necessarily follows that the allegiance of all being? 



32 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

is due to God, the Creator of all, and that they should acknowl- 
edge Him to be their Creator, Preserver, and Benefactor. 

The acknowledgment of this principle of allegiance to God, 
is shown by the observance of the fourth commandment, as 
G-od, in Exodus 20:10, particularly claims the Sabbath as His. 
The moral principle contained in the fourth commandment 
must have been binding from the time when beings, whose 
duty it was to acknowledge God as their Creator, were first 
brought into existence. 

It is only reasonable to believe, therefore, that the INHAB- 
ITANTS OF OTHER WORLDS, like those of our own world, 
have and observe, the Sabbath. Notwithstanding the fact, as 
we learn from astronomy, that the days on different worlds, or 
planets, vary in length, some being shorter and some longer 
than our own, the principle of Sabbath observance would 
necessarily remain the same, and the inhabitants of these 
various worlds would simply observe the Sabbath there, WHEN 
IT CAME TO THEM, the same as we do here, WHEN IT 
COMES TO US. 

God, in His law, has definitely specified the seventh day 
as the Sabbath ; and as the number seven, both in the Bible and 
in nature, represents perfection, it is but reasonable to con- 
clude that the seventh day is the Sabbath for all created worlds 
throughout the universe. THE GREAT GOD, WHO COM- 
MANDS US TO KEEP THE SABBATH, HAS GIVEN AN 
UNMISTAKABLE GUIDE WHEREBY ANY ONE IN THIS 
WORLD OR IN ANY OTHER, CAN KEEP THE SABBATH 
in harmony with the Sabbath commandment. He says, "Prom 
even unto even, shall ye celebrate your Sabbath.' ' Lev. 23:32. 
Thus the keeping of the Sabbath is to begin at evening; and 
Mark tells us when the evening begins: "And at even, when 
the sun did set. ' ' Mark 1 :32. 

According to the record of creation, as given in the first 
chapter of Genesis, all the days of the week begin at even. 
"And the evening and the morning were the first day." The 
evening, or dark part of the day, is mentioned first,, and is the 
beginning of the day. In keeping the Bible Sabbath, there- 
fore, it makes NO DIFFERENCE WHETHER THE DAYS 
ARE LONG OR SHORT ; whether it is to be kept in China or 
in the United States; OR IN THIS WORLD OR IN SOME 
OTHER. The way for any one to keep the Sabbath in har- 
mony with the fourth, or Sabbath commandment, is to keep 



DIVINE PLAN OF THE AGES 33 

it from sunset to sunset, WHEREVER HE IS, beginning at 
the close of the sixth day. 



DIVINE PLAN OF THE AGES, 

OR 
GOD'S ETERNAL PURPOSE 

Underneath the "Law Eternal" diagram, at the intersection 
of D and 1, will be found the diagram "Gospel Plan," outlined 
in blue. This has reference to the plan of salvation, as con- 
ceived in eternity, with the plan of creation. 

The limit of our investigation of this, or of any other 
Bible subject, is shown by inspiration in Deut. 29:29, in the 
following words : "The secret things belong unto the Lord our 
God, but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to 
our children forever." So far, therefore, as God has revealed 
the plan of salvation in His Word, it is our privilege to en- 
deavor to understand it. 

From the Scriptures we learn that in the eternity of the 
past, before the world was created, God the Father and His 
Son Jesus Christ had devised an infinite plan which the Bible 
calls the "eternal purpose," or the "purpose of the Ages." 
Eph. 3:11, R. V. 2 Tim. 1:9, 10, R. V., speaks of God's plan 
of creation and redemption as HIS "OWN PURPOSE AND 
GRACE, which was given us in Christ Jesus, BEFORE TIMES 
ETERNAL." As time can be conceived of only in connec- 
tion with inhabited worlds, "before times eternal" must have 
reference to ages in the past before the universe was created 
or before time was reckoned. 

From that time to the present, this wonderful plan has 
been unfolding, chapter by chapter, to the admiration and 
amazement of all created intelligences outside of this one 
fallen world of ours. The angels are continually beholding 
some new revelation of the character of God, SOME NEW 
UNFOLDING OF THE DIVINE MIND, some further develop- 
ment of this wonderful plan of creation and redemption, and 
in their admiration they CRY, "HOLY, HOLY, HOLY." 



THE PLAN OF SALVATION IN 
ETERNITY 

We often speak of the plan of salvation without really 
comprehending the wonderful problem THAT IS WRAPPED 



34 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

UP IN THE LITTLE WORD "PLAN." As salvation corneal 
only from God, so the planning of it must also have come from 
Him. A plan is a conception of -the mind. Man, because ot 
his inability' to remember, places his plans on paper; but not 
so with God. After a plan has been developed or carried out, 
it becomes no longer a plan, but a reality. The finite mind, 
with its limited powers and knowledge, plans only for small 
things, and for short distances in the future; not so with the 
infinite mind of God, who, knowing the end from the begin- 
ning, could make one great plan for the whole universe, and 
for all time, the results of which would exist throughout 
eternity. 

In Isa. 46 :9, 10 the Creator says: "I AM GOD, and there is 
none like me, DECLARING THE END FROM THE BEGIN. 
NING, and from the ancient times the things that are NOT 
YET DONE." Thus in the divine plan of the ages there must! 
have been included, not only the plan of creation, but also/ 
the plan of redemption and salvation. 

Man, in building a house, first thinks of what he wants,! 
then puts his thoughts in the form of a plan on paper, that,! 
through his mind's eye, he may see the completed buildings 
with all its apartments and dimensions, even before the founda- 
tion is laid. As God is the source of all good principles and) 
methods, it is only reasonable to believe that the principle of 
planning before acting, comes from Him. As a thinking man' 
plans before acting, so it is reasonable to believe that the 
Master mind, who made the mind of man, would do the same. 

God knew the end from the beginning, and nothing takes 
Him by surprise. He is ready for every emergency. Fore-i 
seeing, then, that man would sin, it was in perfect harmony 
with His infinite mind and unlimited wisdom to make pro- 
vision for it, and devise a plan of salvation from it. 

In 2 Tim. 1:9, 10 we find these words: "Who saved us and 
called us . . . according to His own purpose and grace, 
which was given us in Christ Jesus before times eternal." 
From this we see that before creation, grace, or unmerited 
favor, was a part of God's great plan, when only He and 
His Son knew that it would be needed in the accomplishment 
of His eternal purpose. 

Paul, in his letter to the Romans, speaks of the gospel as 
"the revelation of the mystery which hath been kept in 1 
silence through times eternal." Rom. 16:25, R. V. The 
"gospel mystery," or "purpose of grace," which would treat 



THE PLAN OF SALVATION 35 

an offender better than he deserved, was only in plan before 
creation, and throughout " times eternal" it was kept in 
silence, — locked in the mind of its Author. 

The fall of our first parents did not take God by surprise, 
for from the beginning of the creation of inhabited worlds, 
down through to the time when our world was brought into 
existence, and our first parents had fallen, God had a provision 
for it. It was that which Paul calls the "dispensation of 
mystery, which from all ages had been hid in God." Eph. 
3:9, KV. 

A modern writer has said: "The plan of our redemption 
was not an after-thought, a plan formulated after the fall of 
Adam. . . . From the beginning, God and Christ knew 
of the apostasy of Satan, and of the fall of man, through the 
deceptive power of the apostate. . God did not ordain that 
sin should exist, but He foresaw its existence, AND MADE 
PROVISION TO MEET THE TERRIBLE EMERGENCY." 

The doctrine of "the eternal purpose," or the fact that God, 
by His unlimited wisdom and knowledge, foresaw the existence 
of an apostasy, and made provision for it, does not in any 
way make Him responsible for sin. There is no being in the 
universe who hates sin more, or who is more opposed to it, than 
God. 

As we study this wonderful plan of salvation, and see the 
great sacrifice which was made to save any that might fall, 
we will get a better idea of the Creator's utter abhorrence 
for sin, and of His great love for sinners. 

Far back in the council of the ages, when the plan of sal-» 
vation was devised, a moral constitution undoubtedly was) 
ordained, which was to be the test of loyalty for all created 
intelligences throughout the vast universe, for time and eter-J 
nity. It must have been at that time that the risk of sin was 
taken into account. The possibility that men or angels might 
break this moral constitution, or law, and thus come under 
the sentence of death, must have been fully realized, for a 
plan was laid deep enough and broad enough so that the 
"eternal purpose" could not be changed or hindered by any 
possible contingency that might arise. The final result of 
this plan was not to be "according to our works," neither 
dependent upon the course that men or angels might take, but 
"according to His own purpose and grace, which was given 
us in Christ Jesus before the world began." It was then that 
the Son responded, "I have found a ransom," "I will redeem 



36 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

them from death/' "I will become 'surety' for man, that this 
purpose shall be accomplished." 

The everlasting decree was ratified in eternity. It was 
the covenant' of blood accomplished in time, though agreed 
upon before time began. Thus Christ became "the Lamb 
slain from the foundation of the world, " or, as stated by Peter, 
"foreordained before the foundation of the world." 



CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE AND 
ITS INHABITANTS 

A vast universe was to be created and peopled with in- 
telligent beings, and in the plan it must have been designed 
that these created intelligences should reach a state of perfec- 
tion and holiness in which they would yield the highest pos- 
sible glory to their Creator. God the Father was the Supreme 
Architect, and also the Builder. "For every house is builded 
by some man, but He that built all things, is God. ' ' Heb. 3 -A. 
But the Son was the great master-builder in carrying out the 
designs of the Architect. John, speaking of Christ, says, "All 
things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything 
made that was made." John 1:3. "He was in the world, and 
the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not." 
John 1:10. Paul speaks of Christ thus: "Who is the image of 
the invisible God, the first-born of every creature. For by Him 
were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in 
earth, visible and invisible." Col. 1:14-16. "God . . . 
hath . . . spoken unto us by His Son, Whom He hath 
appointed heir of all things, by Whom also He made the 
worlds." Heb. 1:1, 2. 

Thus we learn that the Ruler of the universe was not alone 
in His work of creation. He had an associate, a co-worker, 
who not only could appreciate His purpose, but could share 
His joy in giving happiness to created beings. In Gen. 1:26 
God said to His Son, "Let us make man in Our Image." 

In order to develop character it was necessary that man 
should be created a free moral agent, with the power to choose 
between right and wrong. "God might have created man 
without the power to transgress His law," writes another, "He 
might have withheld the hand of Adam from touching the 
forbidden fruit; but in that case man would have been, not 
a free moral agent; but a mere automaton. Without freedom 



CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE 37 

of choice, his obedience would not have been voluntary, but 
forced. There could have been no development of character." 
Instead, he would be nothing but a mere machine, — no better 
than the locomotive, which is the nearest like a human being 
of any machine made. It eats and digests its fuel, it drinks, 
it has a steam circulatory system; it inhales oxygen and ex- 
hales refuse matter, and is much more powerful than man. 
But what is lacking in the comparison? While the locomotive 
has no mind or power to do, or to choose for itself, but can 
go or stop only at the will of the mind that controls it, man 
has been given a mind and power to think and act and choose 
for himself. 

Both men and angels were upright and innocent at their 
creation, yet they had characters to form, and being freei 
moral agents, with the moral law telling them right from 
wrong, and having power to do either, THEY MUST BE 
TESTED, for characters can not be formed WITHOUT SOME 
KIND OF TEST. This, then,, was the reason why our first 
parents were forbidden to eat of the tree of knowledge of 
good and evil. The words of the commandments, ' ' Thou shalt 
not," prove conclusively that the creatures had power to 
disobey, and thereby become sinners. 

Thus we see that there was a risk or possibility of sin 
entering the universe under God's plan that all His morally 
responsible creatures should be created free moral agents with 
the power to choose between right and wrong, even though 
all was done that an infinite God could do, without using force, 
to induce them to do right. As already stated, creating man a 
free moral agent was a necessary contingency to the formation 
of character. 

ALL LIFE FROM GOD 
"God, by virtue of His great power, is not only the giver 
of life to all things animate, but He is constantly sustaining 
that life, hour by hour and moment by moment." "Not by 
its own inherent energy, does the earth produce its bounties, 
and year by year continue its motions around the sun. An 
unseen hand guides the planets in their circuit of the heavens. 
A mysterious life pervades all nature, — a life that sustains the 
unnumbered worlds throughout immensity; that lives in the 
insect which floats in the summer breeze, . . . that brings 
the bud to blossom, and the flower to fruit. The same power 
that upholds nature, is working in man. The same great law 
that guides alike the stars and the atom, controls human life. 



38 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

The laws that govern the heart's action, regulating the flow 
of the current of life to the body, are the laws of the Mighty 
Intelligence that has the jurisdiction of the soul. From Him 
all life proceeds." — ''Education," page 99. 

The life that is constantly coming from God to each indi- 
vidual to sustain bothi the spiritual and the natural life, may 
be illustrated by the electricity coming from the source of 
power, through the wire and the trolley, to the car. While 
the connection exists between the trolley and the wire, the 
car has wonderful power ; but the moment the trolley becomes 
disconnected, the car is dead. It is true that it may move on 
some distance as a result of the momentum given it by its 
previous connection with the source of power; but as soon as 
that force is spent, the car stops and can not move again until 
its connection is again established. The trolley is so con- 
structed that when this connection is once made, it is not 
difficult to keep it connected; but when the connection is 
broken, it can not of itself become connected again, some out- 
side power having to be brought to its assistance. Just so 
with all created beings. God is the source of their life and 
power. While connected with Him, they live; disconnected, 
they die. As stated in the Scriptures, it is sin that separates 
from God. Isa. 59 :2 ; Eph. 4 :18. True, one thus separated may 
continue to, live for a time, or until his present supply of life 
force has run out, and then death will be the inevitable result, 
as in the case of Adam. After Adam had broken the connection 
between himself and the Source of life by eating of the for- 
bidden fruit, thus violating the law of God, his life did not 
immediately end, although death was the ultimate result. The 
Lord said to him, "In the day that thou eatest thereof, thou 
shalt surely die (margin, dying thou shalt die)." Gen. 2:17. 
However, Adam's life force, which was given him at the be- 
ginning, and which he had received by eating the fruit of 
the tree of life before he fell, was not fully spent until he was 
nine hundred and thirty years of age. 

In order for man to possess an endless life, God made it 
necessary for him to partake of the tree of life. Deprived of 
this, his vitality would gradually diminish until his life would 
become extinct. After Adam and Eve had sinned, God drove 
them from the garden of Eden, and guarded the way to the tree 
of life, lest they should eat of it and "live forever." 



ENTRANCE OF SIN INTO UNIVERSE 39 

The Scriptures say, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die," 

and that "the wages of sin is death.' ' They further tell us 
that "sin is the transgression of the law." In case man 
sinned, or violated the law, the only way that the demands of 
the law could be met, and the violator freed from its penalty, 
was by the stepping in of a substitute, — one who was not only 
the Author of the law, but the Creator of all things. Such 
a one was Christ. 



THE ENTRANCE OF SIN INTO THE 
UNIVERSE 

The question, how sin entered the universe, is perplexing 
to many. They can not understand why a God of love, who is 
infinite in wisdom and power, should ever permit sin, with its 
fearful consequences, to enter any part of His vast creation. 
Neither can they see how He can endure the terrible results 
of woe and desolation that sin has wrought in this world for 
nearly six thousand years, and not put an end to it. 

No good or sufficient reason for the existence of sin can 
be given. Could any excuse for it be found, it would cease to 
be sin. The only definition of sin is that found in the Word 
of God. It is the "transgression of the law;" it is the out- 
working of a principle at war with the great law of God, which 
is the foundation of the divine government. As only the trans- 
gression of the divine law could bring sin and discord, it is 
evident, therefore, that before the entrance of sin, love, joy, 
and peace must have reigned throughout the vast universe. 
All was then in perfect harmony with the Creator's will, love 
for God was supreme, and love for one another impartial. 

That His intelligent creatures might form characters, and 
render to the Creator voluntary service, it was necessary that 
they should be given the privilege of choosing between good 
and evil, and of doing right or wrong. Anything less than 
this would leave them but little better than machines, with 
no freedom of choice, or will power of their own. 

No intelligent being would prefer a mere mechanical exist- 
ence without running the risk of sin, to that of perfect freedom 
with a possibility of sin. This possibility did not by any 
means make it necessary that sin should ever exist; but the 
individual, in choosing to do right when he has the liberty and 
power to do wrong, not only gives glory to his Creator, but, 
as the result of this choice, merits and receives eternal life. 



40 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

In order to develop this plan of freedom of choice and 
liberty of action, it was necessary that all created, morally 
responsible beings should be tested. This was the only way 
to prove them-; for, according to the familiar saying, we never 
know what we would do until brought to the test. From these 
facts, we are forced to conclude, therefore, that not only our 
first parents in the garden of Eden, BUT ALSO THE IN- 
HABITANTS OF OTHER WORLDS, AND THE ANGELS 
OP HEAVEN AS WELL, from the highest to the lowest, 
were given an opportunity to choose between obedience and 
disobedience, and thus stand or fall as their test came to them. 

Lucifer, a high and exalted angel, who was the first of the 
covering cherubs, chose to pervert this freedom, and thus be- 
came the originator of sin. The prophet, speaking of him, 
says: ''Thus saith the Lord God, Thou sealest up the sum, 
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in 
Eden, the garden of God, every precious stone was thy cov- 
ering . . . thou art the anointed cherub that coverest, 
and I have set thee so; thou wast upon the holy mountain of 
God ; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones 
of fire. Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou 
wast created, till iniquity was found in thee." Eze. 28:12-25. 

Lucifer might have remained loyal to God, and honored 
by the angelic host. But this he did not do. The prophet, 
explaining the cause of his vanity and self-exaltation,' says: 
"Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty; thou hast 
corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness." Eze. 
28:17. It is not to be supposed that the steps in Satan's 
apostasy were all taken at once, but that he gradually came to 
indulge a desire for self -exaltation, and make known his dis- 
affection. Speaking of him, the prophet Isaiah says: "For 
thou hast said in thine heart ... I will exalt my throne 
above the stars of God. I will sit also upon the mount of the 
congregation in the sides of the north : I will ascend above the 
heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High." Isa. 
14:13, 14. 

Lucifer, being first of the covering cherubs, held a position 
closely related to the throne of God. This must have given 
him great prestige with the angels, over whom he was leader, 
and next in order to the Son of God. Holding this exalted 
position, and knowing of his great beauty, as well as of his 
wonderful power and wisdom, he had come to look upon him- 
self as self-existent, forgetting the fact that he was only a 



ENTRANCE OF SIN INTO UNIVERSE 41 

created being, and wholly dependent upon his Creator. Had he 
always remembered this, he would never have taken the steps 
he did. 

When Satan fell, it would naturally follow that his in- 
fluence with the angels would lead many of them not only to 
sympathize with him, but eventually to join him in his rebel- 
lion. His statement that he would exalt his throne above the 
stars of God, shows that he expected some of the angels at 
least, if not all of them, to be subjects of his prospective 
kingdom. 

A note of discord now marred the harmonies of heaven. 
Pride and self-exaltation, the forerunners of destruction and 
a fall, awakened forebodings of evil. The spirit of dissatisfac- 
tion thus kindled, was doing its baleful work, not only in the 
heart of Lucifer himself, but was having its leavening in- 
fluence among the angels. He who had said, "I will be like 
the Most High," coveted the position of being on an equality 
with the great Creator of the universe, and thus had violated 
the law of God which says, "Thou shalt not covet." Having 
taken the first steps, it was easy for him to go still farther by 
trying to get the angels to follow in rebellion. Having be- 
come a transgressor of the law of God himself, his next step 
would be to set it aside by saying that angels did not need 
any law to govern them. He is still teaching this same doctrine 
to the inhabitants of this world, and, sad to say, is finding 
many willing adherents. 

We know that Satan succeeded in influencing some of the 
angels to join him in his rebellion, as we are told in 2 Peter 
2 :4, that ' ' God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them 
down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, 
to be reserved unto judgment." 

From what is revealed in the Bible and in nature of the 
character and love of God, we know that such efforts as only 
infinite love and wisdom could devise, were made to convince 
Lucifer and his followers of their error. We know that the 
compassionate Creator, in yearning pity, sought to draw them 
back from the abyss of ruin into which they were about to 
plunge. In great mercy, according to His divine character, God 
bore long with them before expelling them from the beautiful 
home which they had been privileged to enjoy. 

A great many of the angels must have signified their pur- 
pose to accept Satan as their leader. If this were not so, he 
would not have felt justified in matching his forces in battle 



42 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

against Christ and the loyal angels to prevent their being 
expelled from heaven; for the Scriptures tell us that " there 
was war in heaven, Michael and His angels fought against 
the dragon, and the dragon fought and his angels, and pre- 
vailed not, neither was their place found any more in heaven. 
And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called 
the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world ; he was 
cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with 
him." Kev. 12:7-9. 

After Satan and his followers were cast out of heaven, 
God in His infinite wisdom did not destroy them. Had He 
immediately blotted them out of existence, the inhabitants of 
heaven and of the worlds, being unprepared to comprehend 
the nature or consequence of sin, could not have seen the 
justice in their destruction. To have destroyed them at 
once would not have utterly eradicated the spirit of rebellion, 
but would have had a tendency to cause all loyal beings tof 
worship God from fear rather than from love. 

EVIL MUST BE PERMITTED TO COME TO MATUR- 
ITY. God, Who reads the hearts and minds of all His creatures, 
and Who knows the future as well as the past, knew, from the 
very first of Satan's downfall, all the terrible results of sin, 
in all its various forms, that would come to this world and its 
inhabitants, as the outworkings of Satan's ideas of government 
without law. 

But as no created beings had this power of foreknowledge, 
the only way for them to know how Satan's ideas of govern- 
ment would result, was for God to let Satan work them out 
to his own satisfaction in this world. The terrible conse- 
quences of evil would then be an object lesson to all created 
beings for all time to come, and would prevent the possibility 
of sin ever again entering any part of His vast domain. 



THE CREATION OF OUR WORLD 

The narrow black line 3, extending from B to Z, or from 
near the top to the bottom, on the left-hand side of the chart, 
dividing the eternity of the past from the main body of the 
chart, stands for the time when our world was created. 

The pen of inspiration, speaking of the creation of all the 
the heavenly worlds by the word of God, particularly men- 
tions the earth. "By the word of the Lord were the heavens — 



THE CREATION OF OUR WORLD 43 

or worlds — made; and all the host of them by the breath 
of His mouth." (See chapter on "Other Worlds Inhabited.") 
"For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood 
fast." He "laid the foundations of the earth, that it should 
not be removed forever." Ps. 33:6, 9; 104:5. 

Gen; 1:31 says that when God had finished creating the 
earth, He pronounced it "very good." As the power and wis- 
dom of the great Creator is unlimited, His conception of the 
grand and beautiful must be the same; therefore, when He 
said of the finished earth on the sixth day, that IT WAS 
"VERY GOOD," it must also have been exceedingly beautiful. 
Another writer graphically describes the earth in the beginning 
in these words: "Its surface was diversified with mountains, 
hills, and plains, interspersed with noble rivers and lovely 
lakes. . . . Graceful shrubs and delicate flowers greeted 
the eye at every turn. The heights were crowned with trees 
more majestic than any that now exist. The air, untainted 
by foul miasma, was clear and healthful. The entire landscape 
outvied in beauty the decorated grounds of the proudest 
palace." 

After the earth' was created, man, the crowning work of 
his Creator, was brought into existence. The earth, with all 
its grandeur and magnificence, was to be his home throughout 
eternity, on condition that he remain faithful to the One who 
created him. 

In Gen. 1:26, God said to His Son, "Let us make man in 
Our image, and after Our likeness. ' ' This not only proves that 
Adam was made like his Creator physically, but that, in a 
limited degree, he was also made in His likeness mentally 
and morally. But man, because of sin, has fallen far below 
the standard of our first parents ; yet his physical and mental 
make-up still bears a resemblance to his Creator. 

We read in Gen. 1 :27, that ' ' God created man in His own 
image; . . . male and female created He them." The 
origin of the human race is so clearly set forth in these words, 
that no one need have erroneous ideas in regard to it. Any 
one teaching that man was evolved by slow and gradual 
development from the lower forms of vegetable and animal 
life, not only belittles the work of the great Creator, but de- 
grades man, and robs him of the dignity of his origin. "He 
Who set the starry worlds on high, and tinted with delicate 
skill the flowers of the field, Who filled the earth and the 
heavens with the wonders of His power, when He came to 



44 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

crown His glorious work, to place one in the midst to stand 
as ruler of the fair earth, did not fail to create a being 
worthy of the hand that gave him life." 

The great work of creation was accomplished in six days; 
and by referring to the Creation Line, from 3 to 3, on the 
chart, it will be seen that the Sabbath for this world' began 
at creation, and was given to our first parents in Eden. "And 
God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because that in 
it He had rested from all His work which God created and 
made." Gen. 2:3. The Lord set apart this sacred day to com- 
memorate the great work of creation, so that as each suc- 
cessive seventh day returned, man could lay aside his weekly 
employment, and spend the time in meditating upon the char- 
acter of God, His wonderful love, and His great power mani- 
fested in creation. Thus it can be seen that the seventh day 
Sabbath, according to the commandment, is the only day in 
the week that can truly be kept as a memorial of creation. 

"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, 
and there He put the man whom He had formed. ' ' Gen. 2 :8. 
"And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every 
tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food; the tree 
of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowl- 
edge of good and evil. ' ' Gen. 2 :9. In the midst of this beau- 
tiful garden of Eden, surrounded by many luxuriant trees 
that were pleasant to look upon, and laden with fragrant 
and delicious fruit, were two trees more prominent than any 
others. The tree of life, without doubt, surpassed in glory 
every other tree in the garden, because its fruit had the power 
to perpetuate life. As long as man remained obedient to the 
instruction of his Creator, he would be permitted to partake 
of this life-giving fruit, the continual use of which would 
cause him to live through all eternity. But should he disobey 
and lose the privilege of eating of the tree of life, in time his 
life force would run out, and he would cease to live, and 
thus be as though he had never been. 

Another, describing the privileges afforded Adam and Eve 
for studying God and His glorious creation, says: "They 
were visited by angels, and were granted communion with 
their Maker, with no obscuring veil between. . They were full 
of the vigor imparted by the tree of life, and their intellectual 
power was but little less than that of the angels. The mysteries 
of the visible universe, — 'the wondrous work of Him who is 
perfect in knowledge/ — afforded them an exhaustless source 



THE LITERAL WEEK 45 

of instruction and delight. The laws and operations of nature, 
which have engaged man's study for six thousand years, 
were opened to their minds by the infinite Framer and Up- 
holder of all. . . . God's glory in the heavens, the innu- 
merable worlds in their orderly revolutions, "the balancing of 
the clouds,' the mysteries of light and sound, of day and 
night, — all were open to the study of our first parents. On 
every leaf of the forest or stone of the mountain, in every 
shining star, in earth and air and sky, God's name was 
written. ' ' 

"So long as they remained loyal to the divine law, their 
capacity to know, to enjoy, and to love would continually 
increase. They would be continually gaining new treasures 
of knowledge, discovering fresh springs of happiness, and 
obtaining clearer and yet clearer conceptions of the IM- 
MEASURABLE, UNFAILING LOVE OF GOD." 

Before our first parents and their posterity could be 
rendered eternally secure, THEIR LOYALTY MUST BE 
TESTED. So among all the good and beautiful things that 
were given to them. to make them happy, but one thing was 
forbidden, and that was the eating of the tree of knowledge 
of good and evil. This was done only as a means of testing 
their loyalty to their Creator, and of giving them an oppor- 
tunity to form self-denying, law-abiding characters. 

Adam and Eve were created upright and innocent, yet there 
was a possibility of their doing wrong. They must be placed 
under law and left to choose for themselves, AS NO GOV- 
ERNMENT COULD EXIST WITHOUT LAW; and without 
this freedom of choice, their obedience would not have been 
voluntary, but forced. While the freedom of choice given to 
them made it possible for them to disobey, yet no evil tend- 
encies existed within them. On the contrary, they were en- 
dowed with great intellectual power, and had presented before 
them the strongest possible inducements to be true to their 
allegiance to God. While they remained faithful, they had 
free access to the tree of life, and no taint of sin or shadow 
of death marred this fair world of ours. 



THE LITERAL WEEK 

God Himself originated the first week of time in this world, 
when He created the world in six days, and rested the seventh. 



46 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THIS WEEK, LIKE ALL SUBSEQUENT WEEKS, CON- 
SISTED OF SEVEN LITERAL DAYS. "Geology has been 
thought to contradict the literal interpretation of the Mosaic 
record of the- creation. Millions of years, it is claimed, were 
required for the evolution of the earth from chaos; and in 
order to accommodate the Bible to this supposed revelation 
of science, the days of creation are ASSUMED to have been 
vast, indefinite periods, covering thousands or even millions of 
years. Such a conclusion is wholly uncalled for. The Bible 
record is in harmony with itself and with the teaching of 
nature. Of the first day employed in the work of creation is 
given the record, 'The evening and the morning were the 
first day.' Gen. 1:5; and the same in substance is said of 
each of the first six days of creation week. Each of these 
periods Inspiration declares to have been a day consisting of 
evening and morning, like every other day since that time." 
—"Education," pages 128, 129. 

This fact is plainly alluded to in the fourth commandment 
of the decalogue, where, after giving the command, "Remem- 
ber the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, ' ' and stating that six days 
should be used for labor, and the seventh for rest, God gives 
the reason for our observing the weekly Sabbath: "For IN 
SIX DAYS the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all 
that in them is, and rested the seventh day; wherefore the 
Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it." Ex. 20:8-11. 

The reason here given for keeping the Sabbath would be 
robbed of all its force and logic if the days of creation were not 
literal. Man was instructed to follow the example of his 
Creator, by working six days, and resting the seventh. This 
was ever after to be a reminder to him of the creation of the 
world. 

The instruction given in the fourth commandment, to work 
six days and rest the seventh, WOULD BE INCONSISTENT 
if these days were long periods of time. Even if each day 
were only one hundred years long, there has not been an 
individual on this earth since the flood, who has lived long 
enough to work six days, of one hundred years each, and rest 
the seventh. 

To assume that the days of the first week of time were 
long, indefinite periods, is but to assist the great deceiver 
in his cunningly devised plan to cause all mankind to lose faith 
in the Word of God, by having it appear so unreasonable that 
man could see no beauty in it. This false theory strikes 



THE LITERAL WEEK 47 

directly at the fourth commandment, the only one of the 
ten that tells who the true God is, — the One who created all 
things. Without the great truth contained in the fourth com- 
mandment, that God is the Creator of the heavens and the 
earth, it would be useless for missionaries to go from enlight- 
ened Christian lands to heathen countries to try to convince 
the people that they were doing wrong in worshipping false 
gods. The fourth commandment directs the mind to the true 
God by pointing back to the first week of time, when God 
created the heavens and the earth in six days, and rested on 
the seventh. 

This most dangerous and deceptive doctrine, that the days 
of creation were not literal days, but long, indefinite periods, 
is not only causing unbelief and infidelity among non-profes- 
sors of Christianity, and the unlearned of this world, but is 
leading even professed Christians, and many among the learned 
classes, to set aside the record of creation, which is likely to 
be followed, sooner or later, by a disbelief in the Word of 
God as a whole. The Saviour, looking down to this generation, 
and seeing the present condition of things, said, "When the 
Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth ?" Lmke 
18:8. 

In the closing record of the first week, are these words: 
"These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth 
when they were created.' ' Gen. 2:4. This statement does 
not in any way affect the idea that the days of the creation 
were literal; it speaks of each day as a generation only be- 
cause in it God produced or generated some portion of His 
work. 

So-called scientists, who hold to the belief that the creation 
week consisted of long, indefinite periods, also teach the doc- 
trine of evolution. They give as a reason for their position, 
the fact that in recent years wonderful discoveries have been 
made by digging from the earth the bones of men and animals, 
as well as instruments of warfare and petrified trees, much 
larger than any which now exist, or that have existed for thou- 
sands of years. Knowing the great size and proportions to 
which these men, animals, and trees have reached, and doubt- 
ing the power of God to produce such a wonderful creation 
in so short a time as six literal days, they have come to the 
conclusion that it must have taken immense periods for these 
to evolve from plant life to such mammoth giants as they are. 



48 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Many times, in false logic, men fail to carry their conclu- 
sions to their ultimate limit. If their reasoning were good, why 
is it that the men, animals, and trees of today are not far 
superior in size and other respects to those that have been 
found in the earth, as the former have had over four thou- 
sand years more than they in which to develop? 

God has permitted these wonderful discoveries in these last 
days for a purpose. It was not to give a false idea of the 
work of the creation week, but, on the contrary, it was to 
establish confidence in the record given in the book of Genesis, 
and thereby increase our faith in what the Word of God says 
of the future. These relics found in the earth, not only estab- 
lish the truthfulness of the story of the flood, but show, as 
nothing else could, that man, as he is today, instead of coming 
from a much lower order of beings, had his origin in a race 
that was far superior in size and power to any living in this 
generation. Instead of evolving from something lower, man 
has degenerated far below his original condition. 

If the seven days of the creation week were long periods of 
time, or thousands of years, as some claim, there would be 
little harmony between their claim and the inspired record, 
which says that Adam was nine hundred and thirty years old 
when he died. Adam probably lived half, if not more than half 
of the sixth day, and all of the seventh; thus he would have 
been a very old man, — many thousands of years older than the 
record says of him. 

All true science is in harmony with the Word and works 
of God, and when it is rightly understood, there will be no 
conflict between it and divine revelation. 



THE TEMPTATION AND FALL 

On line C of the chart, between 3 and 6, are the words, 
"Law Oral." These have reference to the fact that the law was 
given orally to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden before 
they sinned, or fell. Romans 5:12, speaking of Adam, says 
that by one man • ' sin entered into the world, ' ' and 1 John 3 :4 
states that "sin is the transgression of the law." In Romans 
4 .15 we read that ' 'where no law is, there is no transgression ; ' ' 
hence, the law of God must have existed before Adam sinned, 
as he could not have fallen, or sinned, without it. 



THE TEMPTATION AND FALL 49 

After Satan was expelled from heaven, he continued his 
warfare against the government of God, hy trying to get the 
holy pair in Eden to disobey the law of God, and thus become 
subject to its penalty. The great love of God for His creatures 
must have led Him to send angels from heaven to instruct 
Adam and Eve in regard to the fall of Satan, and his plot for 
their destruction. 

Like the angels, and all other morally responsible beings in 
the universe, the dwellers of Eden were placed upon probation. 
They could obey and live, or disobey and die. As long as they 
were obedient to God, Satan could have no power over them; 
he could only tempt them, or try to get them to sin. The 
promise in 1 Cor. 10:13, that "God is faithful, Who will not 
suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able, but will with 
the temptation also make a way of escape, that ye may be 
able to bear it," was just as applicable to Adam and Eve as it 
is to us. They being free moral agents, with power to choose 
and to act for themselves, had the way of escape made for 
them when the heavenly messengers warned them of this 
fallen foe. Circumstances would lead us to believe that the 
only place where Satan was permitted to tempt them, was at 
the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 

The serpent was used by Satan as a mouth-piece through 
which to tempt Eve. We read that "the serpent was more 
subtle than any beast of the field." Gen. 3:1. He had great 
wisdom, beauty, and intelligence, and undoubtedly was of a 
higher type than any other of the animal creation under 
man ; but after he had been used as a medium by Satan, he was 
cursed by God, and brought down from the highest position 
in the animal creation to the lowest. The Bible says, "The 
Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou has done this, 
thou art cursed above all cattle and above every beast of the 
field." Gen. 3:14. 

Angels have the power to make themselves visible or in- 
visible to man, as is shown by numerous examples in the 
Scriptures. No doubt Satan, the fallen angel, likewise used this 
power, and made himself invisible to Eve as she was looking 
up into the tree of knowledge, richly laden with fruit. There 
she saw the serpent partaking freely of that apparently de- 
licious fruit which she had been forbidden to eat. Satan, 
taking advantage of this opportunity, addressed her, through 
the serpent, thus: "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of 
every tree of the garden ? And the woman said unto the serpent, 



50 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden. But of 
the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God 
hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest 
ye die. And the serpent [or Satan through him] said unto 
the woman, Ye shall not surely die. ,, Gen. 3:1-4. 

Here Satan preached the first sermon on the immortality of 
the soul, and told the first lie to mankind, by saying 1 that 
disobedience would not result in death. But Adam and Eve 
soon began to realize the truthfulness of what God had said, 
and the falsity of the words of the serpent ; for they were not 
only driven from the beautiful garden of Eden, but were kept 
away from the tree of life by the flaming sword which guarded 
it on every side. Thus they had lost the privilege of partak- 
ing of the only fruit which would have perpetuated their lives 
as long as they had access to it. Deprived of it, their vitality 
gradually diminished until, at last, death, God's promised 
result of disobedience, ensued. 

Satan represented to Eve, and to Adam, through her, that 
they would be gainers by breaking the law of God. Eve 
really believed Satan; but her belief in him did not save her 
from the penalty of sin, while her disbelief in the words of 
God was the cause of her fall, and through her, the fall of the 
whole human race. "In the judgment, men will not be con- 
demned because they conscientiously believed a lie, but be- 
cause they did not believe the truth, — because they neglected 
the opportunity of learning what is truth. " 

After Eve had eaten of the forbidden fruit, and had felt no 
immediate evil results of her transgression, she was ready to 
proclaim to her husband that there must be some truth in 
the words of the serpent. Adam, without doubt, saw that 
deception had been practiced upon Eve by the wily foe, 
against whom they had been warned; but from 1 Tim. 2:14, 
we learn that he himself was not deceived, though he partook 
of the forbidden fruit. 

The struggle in Adam's mind must have been intense, for 
he knew that if God's words were true, his wife must die, and 
he be separated from her forever. He did not stop to con- 
sider that the One who had brought Eve into existence, could 
create another, with all the loveliness and affection of the 
one who had sinned, to take her place. Again, he himself 
doubtless began to reason that, inasmuch as the eating of the 
forbidden fruit made no immediate change in Eve, perhaps 
the Lord did not mean just what He said after all. In this 



THE TEMPTATION AND FALL 51 

is shown how men begin to doubt the fulfillment of God's 
judgments, when they do not immediately come to pass. In 
Eccl. 8:11 the Bible, too, recognizes this: "Because sentence 
against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the* 
heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil." 

He also may have reasoned, as many do today, that the 
One who has given us life, with all its blessings, is too good 
to harm us, even though we transgress His commands. 

It has been shown that everything was done that a loving 
Father could do for the happiness of His children, without 
using force; and, it has also been stated, the use of force, 
instead of bringing happiness, would have developed unhappi- 
ness in the fullest sense of the word. 

As Adam was not deceived when he ate of -the forbidden 
fruit, he therefore had no real excuse for his transgression. 
When the Lord asked him, "Hast thou eaten of the tree, 
whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?" he 
answered by saying, "The woman whom Thou gavest to be 
with me, she gave me of the tree, audi did eat." Gen. 3 :11, 12. 
In this Adam thought to excuse himself by placing the re- 
sponsibility of his sin upon the Lord, Who had given him Eve 
for a companion. Eve, likewise, endeavored to excuse her 
sin by placing the blame on the Lord for creating the serpent 
which, she said, beguiled her. 

After Adam and Eve had sinned, ' ' they knew that they were 
naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made them- 
selves aprons." The robes of light, or glory, which had 
covered them in their innocency, disappeared, and an artificial 
covering was made necessary. 

As a result of their disobedience, the Lord drove them from 
the garden of Eden, and placed an angel with a flaming sword, 
which turned every way to guard the tree of life, lest man 
put forth his hand and take and eat, and live forever. Thus 
none of the family of Adam ever had the privilege of eating 
of that life-giving fruit, and consequently, under no condition, 
is man immortal. He can have immortality only through faith 
in Christ, and by living a life in harmony with that faith. 

It must have been with deep humility and great sorrow that 
Adam and Eve left their beautiful home, and went forth to 
dwell upon the sin-cursed earth. The Lord, at this time, 
mercifully prepared for them garments of skins, as a protec- 
tion against the marked changes of temperature, which doubt- 
less came in consequence of sin. The skins probably came from 



52 THE STORY OP THE AGES 



animals that the Lord instructed them to kill as a sacrifice, 
pointing forward to the true sacrifice for sin — Christ. 



THE PLAN OF SALVATION IN 
ACTION 

On. line D of the chart, between 3 and 7, are the words, 
"Gospel Revealed." These have reference to the fact that 
the gospel plan was kept secret until the time came for it to 
be put into operation, and then the first steps were taken by 
its Author to reveal it, not only to our fallen world, but to 
the universe. 

In the plan of salvation, as in that of creation, God and 
Christ were united. Thus we read in the Scriptures: "In 
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, 
and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with 
God." John 1:1. Christ, "the only begotten Son of God" 
(John 3:18), was a separate, personal being, but one in nature, 
one in character, and one in purpose with the Father, 
from the "days of eternity." Micah 5:3. (Margin.) Paul 
says of Him, "Being* made so much better than the angels, 
as He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent NAME 
then they." Heb. 1:4. And in Isa. 9:6, we read that, "His 
name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, 
the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace." 

From these Scriptures, it is evident that God is the family 
name of the Deity, and that Christ, "the mighty God," Who 
bears His Father's name and nature, and is called the "Word 
of God," is God's thought expressed and made audible. In 
other words, the thoughts and plans of the Father were spoken 
into existence by the Son. ' ' For He spake, and it was done ; 
He commanded, and it stood fast." Ps. 33:9. "For by Him 
were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in 
earth, visible and invisible; . . . and He is before all 
things, and by Him all things consist [or hold together]." 
Col. 1 :16, 17. 

It is also said of Christ that "He was full of grace and 
truth. ' ' John 1 :14. The meaning of grace is unmerited favor. 
Thus it was His nature to grant favors to those who did not 
merit them, and to treat offenders better than they deserved. 
He was also "full of truth;" and the Psalmist says, "Thy law 
is the truth." Ps. 119 :142. Christ, then, being full of the law, 
which is a transcript of the character of God, was thus a living 



PLAN OF SALVATION IN ACTION 53 

expression and representation of His Father's character to the 
world and to the whole universe. We learn from Heb. 1 :3, that 
Christ is also the "express image of His Father's person," 
thus representing to the inhabitants of this world, not only 
His Father's character, but His personality as well. 

While here in human flesh, among men, He laid aside His 
own divine power, thus "emptying Himself," that His Father 
might be represented through Him. Christ, speaking of Him- 
self in John 14:10, says : "I speak not of Myself, but the Father 
that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works;" and in 2 Cor. 
5:19, we read that, "God was in Christ, reconciling the world 
unto Himself. ' ' 

Christ is called "the Prince of Peace ;" and, being a Prince, 
"He is heir of all things," and "sits upon the throne with 
His Father" ruling the universe. Heb. 1:2; Rev. 3:21. The 
title, "Prince of Peace," indicates that He was a ruler of peace, 
and that He would restore peace, should discord reign, even 
though He had to give His life to do it. 

And now, in this study, we have reached the time when 
sin and discord had. entered one of the fair worlds which God 
had made. This earth, on which we dwell, had become the 
scene of sorrow, desolation, and death, caused by the dis- 
obedience of our first parents. The sin of Adam and Eve 
must have caused great sorrow to all the inhabitants of heaven. 
Christ, the Son of God, was so touched with pity for the fallen 
race., that He offered to give His life to save mankind from 
eternal death. God said, "I have found a ransom;" "I will 
redeem them from death." Thus was provided the way 
whereby all that believed on Him could again be restored to the 
favor of God, and be given eternal life. 

God was then to be manifested in Christ, "reconciling the 
world unto Himself," while Christ was to bear the penalty of 
sin in man's stead. He would leave His position as commander 
in heaven, come to earth, take man's nature upon Himself, and 
by experience become acquainted with the temptations and 
sorrows that man would have to endure. By such a life and 
experience, He would be able to succor them that should be 
tempted. When His work as a teacher was ended, He was to 
be delivered into the hands of wicked men and demons, to be 
made to suffer insult and torture. Then He must be hung 
upon the cross, as a guilty sinner, and die the most cruel of 
deaths. But the Father would not leave His Son in this dark 
hour; the third day He would raise Him to life again, and 



54 THE STORY OF THE AGES 



after a few days with His disciples, He would return to heaven 
from whence He came, there to minister as High Priest for 
His people until His second coming to this earth, when He 
will take all those who have believed on His name to the city 
He has prepared for them. 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD FROM 
CREATION TO THE FLOOD 

The Historic Diagram in red, on lines R and S, beginning 
at creation, R, S and 3, and continuing through to R, S and 8, 
gives, by means of object lessons, a brief history of the world, 
from creation to the beginning of the Babylonian Empire. The 
date of the rise of this power, 3379 A. M., or 625 B. C., is 
shown on lines 0, Q and 8. 

The names of the first two sons of Adam and Eve were 
Cain and Abel. The difference in the character of these two 
men is described in Gen. 4:3-8. 

The Bible says that Abel, in making his offering to the 
Lord, "brought of the firstlings of his flock (margin, 'sheep' 
or 'goat')." In doing this, he not only gave the best that 
he had, but was offering something that had life. His sacri- 
fice, involving the shedding of blood, pointed forward to the 
death of Christ, and thereby showed his faith in the great 
sacrifice of the Lamb of God, who shed His blood on Calvary's 
cross. 

The Lord's acceptance of Abel's offering is an evidence 
that Abel was carrying out some previous command. Cain, 
without doubt, knew the requirements of God as well as did 
his brother Abel ; but by his bringing the kind of offering he 
did, he proved himself to be out of harmony with his knowl- 
edge. 

After Cain killed his brother, the Lord gave Adam another 
son, whom he called Seth. The Bible tells us that there were 
also born unto Adam, sons and daughters. Gen. 5:4. From 
these children came the inhabitants of the old world; but the 
two most important lines of descendants mentioned are those of 
Cain and Seth. 

Gen. 4:25 says that Seth was to take the place of Abel. 
Consequently, the early descendants of Cain and Seth were 
as widely different in their inclinations and tendencies, as 
were the inclinations and tendencies of Cain and Abel them- 






HISTORY OF THE WORLD 55 

selves. The difference in the character of these two lines of 
descendants at first kept them from intermingling and inter- 
marrying to any extent. As long as they remained thus 
separate, the descendants of Seth maintained the worship of 
God in its purity; but with the lapse of time they mingled 
more or less with each other, and then wickedness began 
rapidly to increase. Gen. 6:1, 2 says, "When men began to 
multiply on the face of the earth, . . . the sons of God 
[or of the line of Seth] saw the daughters of men [or of the 
line of Cain] that they were fair; and they took them wives 
of all which they chose." 

In the majority of cases, where the righteous and the 
wicked intermarry, the standard of righteousness is lowered, 
instead of uplifted. So it is evident from the Bible record 
that the intermarrying of the descendants of these two men 
was productive of the worst results. In Gen. 6 :5, Moses, speak- 
ing of the character of the people at this time, says, "God 
saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and 
that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only 
evil continually." 

It was at this time that God pronounced destruction upon 
the wicked. While the tide of human guilt was growing deeper 
and deeper, the clouds of divine judgment were gathering 
faster and faster. Yet Enoch, being true to his God amid all 
this moral darkness, pleaded with the people to turn from 
their evil ways, that the bolt of God's vengeance might be 
stayed. Although this sinful and pleasure-loving people 
disregarded the warnings of Enoch, yet he had a testimony 
that his ways were pleasing to God, and he continued this 
faithful work until he was translated from earth to heaven, 
without coming under the dominion of death. 

"In the days of Noah, a double curse was resting upon the 
earth in consequence of Adam's transgression, and of the 
murder committed by Cain. Yet this had not greatly changed 
the face of nature. There were evident tokens of decay, but 
the earth was still rich and beautiful in the gifts of God's 
providence. The hills were crowned with majestic trees sup- 
porting the fruit-laden branches of the vine. The vast garden- 
like plains were clothed with verdure, and sweet with fragrance 
of a thousand flowers. The fruits of the earth were in great 
variety, and almost without limit. The trees far surpassed in 
size, beauty, and perfect proportions, any now to be found; 
their wood was of fine grain and hard substance, closely re- 



56 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

sembling stone, and hardly less enduring. Gold, silver, and 
precious stones existed in abundance.' ' 

Thus, in the early history of this world, sin had become so 
great and extensive that God could bear with it no longer, so 
one hundred and twenty years before it transpired, the Lord, 
as recorded in the sixth chapter of Genesis, told Noah that He 
would destroy every living thing upon the face of the earth, 
by a flood of waters, and commanded him to build an ark. 
He gave Noah full and explicit directions concerning every 
detail of its construction. 

During this hundred and twenty years, Noah was preaching 
to the people of the fearful results that would follow if they 
did not repent and turn from their evil ways. At the same 
time, every hour of work he spent upon the ark was a prac- 
tical demonstration of his perfect faith in what God had told 
him of the coming destruction. 

Gen. 2:6, speaking of the time before the flood, says: 
" There went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole 
face of the ground;" and verse 5 says, "the Lord God had not 
caused it to rain upon the earth." So the falling rain, the 
terrific thunder, and the fierce lightning, had been entirely 
unknown to the people who lived before the flood. Neither 
had the rivers ever passed their boundaries, but flowed peace- 
fully on to the sea. 

The faith of Noah, as manifested in building such a large 
boat on dry land, where it was utterly impossible, from any 
human or natural standpoint, to get water upon which to 
float it, was indeed wonderful. 

Then, too, Noah had to meet the ridicule of the scientific 
men of his time, who, like the scientists of today, reasoned 
only from natural laws. The so-called great men of those 
days did not realize, neither do the great men of today compre- 
hend that even the waters obey the command of Him, Who 
said, "Hitherto shalt thou come but no farther." Job 38:11. 

The time had arrived when the probation of these wicked 
people was about to close. After Noah had completed the 
ark according to the directions given him, he was instructed 
to store it with food for man and beast. At this time, without 
doubt, Noah, with an anxiety of feeling that words can not 
express, made his last solemn appeal to the people, only to 
receive scoffs and derision in return. 

It must have been a surprise to that mocking, scoffing 
multitude, when lo ! there was seen coming from forest and 



HISTORY OF THE WORLD 57 

mountain, hill and plain, beasts of all kinds, from the largest 
to the smallest, from the most ferocious to the most gentle, 
each silently wending his way to the ark; while, at the same 
time, birds of all descriptions came from every direction, all 
in perfect order, and entered the ark together. Gen. 7:2, 3 
says that the clean beasts and the fowls of the air went into 
the ark by sevens, male and female, while the unclean beasts, 
male and female, went in by twos. 

It was at this time that the Lord said to Noah, ' ' Come thou 
and all thy house into the ark • for thee have I seen righteous 
before me in this generation." Gen. 7:1. 

In Gen. 7:4, we read that when all were in the ark, and 
everything was in readiness for the flood, the Lord said, "Yet 
seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon th.e earth." As 
each day of this short period came and went, bringing with 
it no sign of the coming flood, it proved a test of faith to those 
within the ark, and a time of triumph and rejoicing to those 
without. On each of the seven days of this important week, the 
sun probably shone as brightly, and the sky was as clear and 
free from clouds, as on any day from creation to that time. 

When the ark was closed, and Noah was told that the rain 
would not begin for seven days, the scoffing world without was 
ignorant of this fact. So, without doubt, each day's delay only 
strengthened them in the belief that Noah was a deluded 
fanatic, and that the flood. would never come. 

But upon the eighth day, dark, heavy clouds overspread 
the heavens. Mutterings of thunder and flashes of lightning 
followed. The inhabitants of the old world had never before 
witnessed anything like this, and their* hearts must have been 
struck with consternation and fear. No doubt they secretly 
inquired among themselves, Can it be true that Noah was 
right, after all, and that the world is doomed to destruction? 
The heavens grew darker and darker; the rain fell faster and 
faster; "the fountains of the great deep were broken up," 
and "the windows of heaven were opened." 

The ark, though as strong as it was possible for man to 
make it, must have trembled in every fiber, as it was beaten 
about, and flung from billow to billow by the merciless wind 
and waves. Only God could have preserved it in that awful 
storm. In this closing up of the old world's history, how its 
inhabitants must have pleaded for one more hour of proba- 
tion, one n,ore offer of mercy! but it was now too late; the 
sweet voice *f mercy was to be heard no more forever by 



58 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

them. They had rejected its many pleadings in the days of 
their revelry; their sins had reached unto heaven; and now! 
love, as well as justice, demanded that God's judgments 
should put a check upon sin. Peter, referring to this terrible 
destruction and overthrow, says: "By the word of God . . . 
the world that then was, being overflowed with water, per- 
ished •" and he adds, "but the heavens and the earth which 
are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto 
fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly 
men." 2 Pet. 3:5-7. 

ANOTHER DAY, THEREFORE, IS FAST HASTENING 
ON, when a storm far more terrible than that just described 
will destroy the inhabitants of this world; another time is! 
coming when the people of this present world will wail and! 
cry for another opportunity to repent; but, as with those 
before the flood, IT WILL BE TOO LATE. Mercy's sweetl 
voice, so long unheeded, will cease its pleadings, TO BE 
HEARD NO MORE. 



PATRIARCHAL HISTORY 

In the lower left-hand corner of the chart, under the his- 
toric illustration, beginning at creation, in a green colored 
diagram extending from T and 3 diagonally down to Z and 8, 
are the names of the patriarchs who lived contemporary from 
Adam to Isaac. 

Adam came on the stage of action on the sixth day of 
creation week, and lived until he was nine hundred and 
thirty years old (Gen. 5:5), as will be seen by the green dia- 
gram, on line T, between 3 and 5, where his name is found. 
The black line at the right of his name, pointing to figures 
above and below the Time Line, shows that Adam died 930 

A. M., or 3074 B. C. 

Below the name Adam, in the same diagram, on line U, 
between 4 and 6, is the name Methuselah, at the left of which 
is a short line pointing up to the dates 687 A. M. and 3317 

B. C. on the Time Line, which shows the date of his birth. 
Between the names of these two men is the figure 243, which 
indicates the number of years they lived contemporary. 

We are all endowed with two prominent traits of char- 
acter; first, that of inquisitiveness; and, second, a desire to 
impart our knowledge to others. Thus we can see that, with- 



PATRIARCHAL HISTORY 59 

out doubt, Adam not only told Methuselah, all he knew of the 
creation of the world, but that Methuselah would also be inter- 
ested enough to inquire of Adam many things concerning it. 

Methuselah lived seven hundred and twenty-six years after 
the death of Adam, or down to the year of the flood, 1656 
A. M., or 2348 B. C, as shown on line 6. In the next green 
square below, on line V, is the name Shem, who was born 
1558 A. M., or 2446 B. C, and who was contemporary with 
Methuselah ninety-eight years, as indicated by the figures 
between the two names. 

The same manner of imparting history by word of mouth 
continued for thousands of years. "For nearly a thousand 
years, Adam lived among men, a witness to the results of sin. 
Faithfully he sought to stem the tide of evil. He had been 
commanded to instruct his posterity in the way of the Lord, 
and he carefully treasured what God had revealed to him, 
and repeated it to succeeding generations. To his children's 
children, to the ninth generation, .he described man's holy and 
happy estate in Paradise, and repeated the history of his 
fall, telling them of the suffering by which God had taught him 
the necessity of strict adherence to His law, and explaining 
to them the merciful provisions for their salvation." "The 
antediluvians were without books, they had no written records ; 
but with their great physical and mental vigor, they had strong 
memories, able to grasp and retain that which was communi- 
cated to them, and in turn to transmit it unimpaired to their 
posterity. And for hundreds of years there were nine genera- 
tions living upon the earth contemporaneously, having the 
opportunity of consulting together, and profiting each by the 
knowledge and experience of all." — Patriarchs and Prophets, 
pages 82, 83. 

Before the flood, men lived to the great age of eight and nine 
hundred years, while but few who were born near the close of 
the first century after the flood, lived over two hundred years. 
The physical powers of man could not have been lessened to 
such a degree without the mental also being affected; thus 
it became necessary for them to record events of interest on 
tablets, or parchment, for future reference. YET SHEM, the 
son of Noah, who lived ninety-eight years before the flood, 
still retained the vigor of mind and body of that long-lived 
race, and continued to live for five hundred and two years 
after the flood, or to 2158 A. M., or 1846 B. C, as shown on 
line 7, between Q and 0. It will be seen, therefore, that Shem 



60 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

was a connecting link between the antediluvian world and this 
present world, his life extending back for nearly a century 
into the old world', aud reaching down far enough in the new 
world to be contemporary with Abraham one hundred and 
fifty years, and with Isaac fifty years. 

We can get a better idea of the great age to which man 
lived before the flood, by a comparison. We see by the date 
of the death of Shem, that the lives of the three men, Adam, 
Methuselah, and Shem, covered a period of 2158 years, reaching 
down to within 1846 years of the beginning of the Christian 
era, or 156 years nearer the Christian era than creation. Had 
the lives of these three men lapped one year instead of the 
number of years they did lap, their combined ages would have 
reached to within 1508 years of the Christian era, or to the time 
when Moses was sixty-three years old, as he was born 1571 
B. C. Had Matthew, Mark, and Luke come on the stage of 
action and passed off at the same relative ages, each living 
contemporary the same length of time as did Adam, Methuselah, 
and Shem, Matthew would have lived to A. D. 930. Mark 
would have been living at A. D. 1656, and Luke would be alive 
today, with a lease of life for two hundred and forty-six years 
in the future, or to A. D. 2158. How easy it would be, under 
such circumstances, for Luke to tell us, by word of mouth, all 
about the life of Christ, and the history pertaining to that 
time, having learned it from Matthew through Mark! With 
such great minds as such a powerful and long-lived race of 
men would have, we can readily see that a written history 
would be of but little use to them. 

Under the name Shem, in the green colored diagram, will be 
seen that of Isaac : these two men living contemporary for fifty 
years. Isaac, being a man of God, as was Shem, must have 
been eager to learn from Shem the history of creation, and 
Shem must have been equally anxious to impart this knowl- 
edge to him. Levi was the grandson of Isaac, and Amram, 
the father of Moses, was the grandson of Levi ; so it is reason- 
able to believe that the whole history of creation and the 
events following, as recorded in the book of Genesis, were 
given to Moses by word of mouth, from Isaac, through only 
two men, Levi and Amram. 

While it is true that all that Moses wrote was inspired of 
God, yet this inspiration probably did not consist so much in 
telling him things he did not know, as it did in instructing 



BIBLE DESCRIPTION OF FLOOD 61 

him what to write about the events with which he was already 
familiar. 

The Bible record of creation and the events following, 
is very brief. Many things must have occurred during the 
lives of Adam and the other ancient patriarchs that are not 
recorded. 

It seems impossible that anyone could doubt the fact that 
the two men, Methuselah and Shem, whose lives more than 
spanned the time between Adam and Isaac, were perfectly 
familiar with not only all that is recorded in the book of 
Genesis, but many other events beside. This being true, it is 
only natural to believe that Isaac, Levi, and Amram, whose 
lives spanned the time from Shem to Moses, would have handed 
down the same information to Moses. From this, we can see 
that the lives of five men — Methuselah, Shem, Isaac, Levi, and 
Amram — would reach from Adam to Moses. 

This is an age of skepticism and unbelief, and many pro- 
fess to believe the Bible record o.nly as far back as secular 
history goes, or to near the time of Moses, as they corroborate 
each other. In this patriarchal history we have double evi- 
dence of the truthfulness of the record of creation, as given 
to Moses; for we not only have it proved by inspiration, butj 
we also have the same record brought down by word of mouth, 
from Adam, through only five men, to Moses. 



BIBLE DESCRIPTION OF THE 

FLOOD 

"And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come 
before me ; for the earth is filled with violence through them ; 
and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth. Make thee 
an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, 
and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And this 
is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the 
ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, 
and the height of it thirty cubits. A window shalt thou make 
to the ark, and in a cubit shalt thou finish it above; and the 
door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof; with lower, 
second, and third stories shalt thou make it. And, behold, I, 
even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy 
all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven ; and 
every thing that is in the earth shall die. But with thee will 
I establish My covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, 



62 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with 
thee. And of every living thing of all- flesh, two of every sort 
shall thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; 
they shall be male and female. Of fowls after their kind, 
and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the 
earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, 
to keep them alive. And take thou unto thee of all food that 
is eaten, and thou shalt gather it to thee; and it shall be for 
food for thee, and for them. Thus did Noah; according to all 
that God commanded him, so did he." Gen. 6:13-22. 

"And the Lord said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy 
house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before Me 
in this generation. Of every clean beast thou shalt take to 
thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that 
are not clean by two, the male and his female. Of fowls also 
of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed 
alive upon the face of all the earth. For yet seven days, and 
I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty 
nights; and every living substance that I have made will I 
destroy from off the face of the earth. 

"And Noah did according unto all that the Lord com- 
manded him. And Noah was six hundred years old when the 
flood of waters was upon the earth. And Noah went in, and 
his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the 
ark, because of the waters of the flood. Of clean beasts, and 
of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing 
that creepeth upon the earth, there went in two and two unto 
Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had com- 
manded Noah. And it came to pass after seven days, that the 
waters of the flood were upon the earth. In the six hundredth 
year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day 
of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great 
deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. 
And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights. 
In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and 
Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the three 
wives of his sons with them, into the ark; they, and every 
beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and 
every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his 
kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort. 
And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all 
flesh, wherein is the breath of life. And they that went in, 
went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded 



BIBLE DESCRIPTION OF FLOOD 63 

him: and the Lord shut him in. And the flood was forty days 
upon the earth ; and the waters increased, and bare up the 
ark, and it was lift up above the earth- And the waters pre- 
vailed, and were increased greatly upon tne earth; and the 
ark went upon the face of the waters. And the waters 
prevailed exceedingly upon the earth ; and all the high hills 
that were under the whole heaven were covered. Fifteen 
cubits upward did the waters prevail ; and the mountains were 
covered. And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both 
of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing 
that creepeth upon the earth, and every man : all in whose nos- 
trils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. 
And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the 
face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping 
things, and the fowl of the heavens; and they were destroyed 
from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that 
were with him in the ark. And the waters prevailed upon the 
earth an hundred and fifty days. ' ' .Genesis 7. 

AFTER THE FLOOD 

"And God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and 
all the cattle that were with him in the ark : and God made a 
wind to pass over the earth, and the waters asswaged; the 
fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were 
stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained; and the 
waters returned from off the earth continually; and after the 
end of the hundred and fifty days the waters were abated. 

"And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seven- 
teenth day of the month, upon the mountains of Ararat. And 
the waters decreased continually until the tenth month : in the 
tenth month, on the first day of the month, were the tops of the 
mountains seen. 

"And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah 
opened the window of the ark which he had made ; and he sent 
forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters 
were dried up from off the earth. Also he sent forth a dove 
from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face 
of the ground ; but the dove found no rest for the sole of her 
foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters 
were on the face of the whole earth; then he put forth his hand, 
and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark. 

"And he stayed yet other seven days; and again he sent 
forth the dove out of the ark ; and the dove came in to him in 



64 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

the evening; and, lo, in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked 
off ; so Noah knew that the waters .were abated from off the 
earth. 

"And he stayed yet other seven days; and sent forth the 
dove ; which returned not again unto him any more. 

"And it came to pass in the six hundredth and first year, 
in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were 
dried up from off the earth ; and Noah removed the covering of 
the ark, and looked, and, behold, the face of the ground was 
dry. And in the second month, on the seven and twentieth 
day of the month, was the earth dried. 

"And God spake unto Noah, saying, Go forth of the ark, 
thou, and thy wife, and thy sons, and thy sons' wives with 
thee. Bring forth with thee every living thing that is with 
thee, of all flesh, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of every creep- 
ing thing that creepeth upon the earth; that they may breed 
abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply upon 
the earth. 

"And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his 
sons' wives with him: every beast, every creeping thing, and 
every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their 
kinds, went forth out of the ark. 

"And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of 
every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt 
offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a sweet savour ; 
and the Lord said in His heart, I will not again curse the 
ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's 
heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any 
more everything living, as I have done. While the earth 
remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and sum- 
mer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. " Genesis 8. 



CHALDEAN DESCRIPTION OF 
THE FLOOD 

The following description of the flood, taken from the 
famous "Deluge Tablet" discovered at Nineveh, and trans- 
lated by George Smith, of the British Museum, in 1872, har- 
monizes quite generally with the Bible description of the flood, 
and is evidence that the ancient nations had traditions of this 
great event: 

"I will reveal to thee, Gilgamesh, the secret, 
And the oracle of the gods will I tell thee ; 



CHALDEAN DESCRIPTION OF FLOOD 65 

The city of Shurippak, the city, thou knowest, which lies on 

the bank of the river Euphrates, 
This city was old, when the gods within decided to bring a 

deluge, even the great gods, 



Man of Shurippak, son of Ubara-Tutu, 

Build a house, construct a ship, forsake thy possessions, take 

heed for thy life ! 
Leave behind thy property; save (thy) life. 
Bring the seed of life of every kind into the ship ; 
The ship that thou shalt build, let her measurements be well 

proportioned, 
Her width and her depth shall (be of good proportions). 

Then launch her. 
Then I understood and spake to Ea, my lord : 

1 . . . what thou didst command will 

I observe, and I will do it. ' 



On the following morning at daybreak I . . . 

The light I feared ; 

. . . all that was necessary I collected ; 

On the fifth day I drew its design. 

With everything that I had, I filled it ; 

With everything that I had of silver, I filled it ; 

With everything that I had of gold, I filled it ; 

With everything that I had of the seed of life, I filled it. 

I embarked with my whole family, my servants, 

The cattle of the field, the beasts of the field, and the workmen, 

all of them I embarked. 
Shamash set a time limit (a sign) : 
When the rulers of darkness at evening time send a destructive 

rain. 
Then enter the ship, and close the ship (thy door). 
His time limit was reached, and 

The rulers of darkness at evening time sent a destructive rain. 
At the break of day, I trembled. 
I feared to see the day. 
I entered the ship and I closed my door. 
The guidance of the ship I gave to Buzur-Kur-gal, the sailor, 
The great structure, together with its contents. 
Like as an onslaught in battle, it fell upon the people. 

Even in heaven the gods feared the deluge; 
They withdrew, went up to the heaven of god Anu. 
There the gods crouched down like dogs, on the enclosing walls 
they sat down. 

Six days and nights 

The wind blew, the deluge and storm beat the land. 

At the dawn of the seventh day, the rain, the flood ceased, 

The storm which had battled like an army ceased, 



THE STORY OF THE AGES 



The waters of the abyss sank back, the great storm, the deluge, 

came to an end. 
I looked out over the sea, crying aloud, 
But all mankind had turned to earth (again). 
In place of habitations, everything had become a marsh. 
I opened an air-hole, and light fell upon my face. 
I sank back, and sat down ; I wept. 
My tears flowed down my cheeks. 
I looked up : The world a wide ocean ! 
On the twelfth (day?) there appeared a bit of land. 
To mount Nitsir the ship made its way, 
The mountain of the land of Nitsir held the ship and let it 

not go; 
One day, two days, mount Nitsir held the ship and let it not go, 
The third day, the fourth day, mount Nitsir held the ship and 

let it not go, 
The fifth day, the sixth day, mount Nitsir held the ship and 

let it not go. 
The seventh day, at dawn, 

I sent out a dove ; she left, she flew hither and thither, 
There being no lighting place, she returned; 
I sent out a swallow; she left, she flew hither and thither, 
There being no lighting place, she returned. 
I let go a raven; she left. 

The raven went, and saw the recession of the waters. 
She ate, waded about in the mire, and did not return. 
I let everything go out to the four winds, I sacrificed; 
I poured out a libation upon the top of the mountain; 
I set down censers seven and seven, 

Into them I poured out calamus, cedar-wood, and sweet-incense. 
The gods smelled the savour, the gods smelled the sweet 
savour.'' — "The Monuments and the Old Testament," by Ira 
M. Price, pages 90-93. 

By comparing the two records the reader will be impressed 
by the large number of similarities between the two. Both 
accounts speak of the building of a ship, or ark ; of the preser- 
vation of the seed of life; of a deluge of waters with a great 
storm ; of landing on a mountain ; of sending out of a bird three 
times ; of an offering of a sacrifice upon landing ; and of a sweet 
savour ascending from the offering to the Deity. 

ANOTHER DELUGE TABLET 

Further proof that the Bible version of the flood is correct 
is found in a recent discovery by Professor H. V. Hilprecht of 
the University of Pennsylvania, of the fragment of a tablet in 
the Nippur temple excavations at Nippur, an ancient city of 
Babylonia, located about fifty miles from Babylon. The sup- 
posed date of the tablet is between 2137 and 2005 B. C, which 



TOWER OF BABEL 67 



would make it probable that the writer of it had obtained his 
version of the prophecy either directly from a survivor of the 
deluge, or from the next generation following. 

The translation of this fragment, as made by Professor Hil- 
precht, and published in the New York Independent, of March 
24, 1910, is as follows : 

". . . thee . . . 
[The confines of Heaven and Earth] I will loosen, 
[A deluge I will make and] it shall sweep away all men to- 
gether ; 
[But thou seek] life before the deluge cometh forth ; 
[For over all living beings], as many as there are, I will bring 

overthrow, destruction, annihilation. 
. . . Build a great ship and . . . 
. . . total height shall be its structure. 
. . . It shall be a houseboat carrying what has been saved 

of lif e. 
. . . with a strong deck cover [it]. 
[The ship] which thou shalt make 

[Into it bring] the beasts of the field, the birds of heaven, 
[And the creeping things, TWO OF EVERYTHING], instead 

of a number, • 
. . . and the family „ . * 
. . . and . . .." 

The words in brackets are supplied by Professor Hilprecht ; 
but even without them there is no question but that it tells the 
story of the flood. 

Referring to this latest discovery of deluge tablets, Bishop 
Samuel Fallows, as reported in the Chicago American, of March 
19, 1910, says: "I read of the discovery with great interest. 
It is another of the many proofs that are coming to hand that 
the critics of the accuracy of the Old Testament are wrong/ ' 
Rev. Melville P. Boynton, in the same paper, said: "We 
have an additional argument to refute the critics of the accu- 
racy of the Bible. I congratulate Professor Hilprecht on the 
good work. In the past three years, in fact, archaeological 
research has consistently brought forth proofs, if these were 
needed, of the truth of the Old Testament." 



TOWER OF BABEL 

Upon Noah and his family, whom God had so wonderfully 
preserved through the flood, was placed the responsibility of 
re-peopling the earth. The reason why the Lord made this 
choice is found in Gen. 7:1. "For thee have I seen righteous 



68 THE STORY OF THE AGES 



before me in this generation." But human nature had not 
been changed by the flood. The seeds of sin were still in the 
human heart. In the descendants of Noah, therefore, the same 
characteristics soon came to be manifested as were seen in the 
people before the flood. 

For some time after the flood, Noah and his descendants 
continued to dwell among the mountains. As they became 
more numerous, the work of apostasy began to manifest itself 
among them. This led to divisions, and consequently, those 
who desired to cast off all the restraints of divine law, decided 
to journey to the plains of Shinar, on the banks of the river 
Euphrates. Here they decided to build a city in which they 
would erect a tower high enough to make it a place of safety 
in case of another flood. In this they showed their disbelief 
in the promise of God, that He would not again destroy the 
earth by a flood. 

After the tower had reached a great height, the Lord said, 
"Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; 
. . . let us go down, and there confound their language, 
that they may not understand one another's speech." Gen. 
11:6, 7. Thus the Lord put a sudden stop to all their work, 
for the only way those at the top of the tower had of communi- 
cating with those at the base, was by having men stationed 
at different points between, each man to receive and report 
to the next one below him, the orders and directions for needed 
material, and for carrying on the work. The confounding of 
their language made it impossible for them to understand one 
another, so that the material called for was the reverse of what 
was needed. Confusion and dismay followed, therefore, and 
all their work came to a standstill. The misunderstanding 
among them led to great disappointment, the reproaching of 
one another in rage, much strife, and even bloodshed. The 
following Chaldean description of the tower of Babel, from 
an inscription of Nebuchadnezzar, gives a curious and striking 
reference to this story of Babel and the confusion of tongues : 

"The first, which is the house of the earth's base, the most 
ancient monument of Babylon, I built and finished it; I have 
highly exalted its head with bricks covered with copper. We 
say for the other, that is, this edifice, the house of the seven 
lights of the earth, the most ancient monument of Borsippa: 
A former king built it (they reckon forty-two ages), but he 
did not complete its head. Since a remote time people had 
abandoned it, without order expressing their words. Since 
that time, the earthquake and the thunder had dispersed its 



THE ORIGIN OF NATIONS 



sun-dried clay, the bricks of the casing had been split, and the 
earth of the interior had been scattered in heaps." — McClin- 
tock and Strong's Encyclopedia, art., "Confusion of Tongues." 

Commenting on this, the author just quoted, says: 

"This discovery of this inscription points out to us, among 
the ruins still lifting their heads around the site of ancient 
Babylon, the still gigantic remains of a monument which, in 
the days of Nebuchadnezzar, was believed to be the tower of 
Babel. It is this that the inhabitants of the country still call 
'Birs Nimrod,' the tower of Nimrod, and in the midst of the 
plains, it still looks like a mountain. ' ' 

George Smith's "Assyrian Discoveries," pages 58, 59, 
speaking of the tower of Babel, further says: 

"Birs Nimrod is one of the most imposing ruins in the 
country ; its standing in the midst of a vast plain with nothing 
to break the view, makes the height of the ruin more impress- 
ive. The principal mound rises about one hundred and fifty 
feet above the plain; it is in the shape of a pyramid or cone, 
and at its top stands a solid mass of vitrified bricks. . . . 
The Birs Nimrod is most probably the tower of Babel of the 
book of Genesis. ' ' 

The Lord knew that it would be better for mankind to 
be tillers of the soil, than to be huddled together in cities ; and 
so, as stated in Gen. 11:8, "The Lord scattered them abroad 
from thence upon the face of all the earth." Naturally, those 
who spoke the same language separated into companies by 
themselves, and settled in different parts of the earth, and in 
this way, came the various nationalities we have today. 



THE ORIGIN OF NATIONS 

Speaking of the three sons of Noah, the Bible says, "These 
are the three sons of Noah; and of them was the whole earth 
overspread." Gen. 9 :19. 

"The Bible reveals the origin of nations as well as the ori- 
gin of the world, of man, of sin, and of salvation. In all 
these things the Bible record is correct, because it is the Word 
of God. 'All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.' 2 Tim. 
3:16. In the tenth chapter of Genesis there is a catalogue of 
the sons and sons' sons of Noah, and the catalogue and chapter 
closes with these words : 'These are the families of the sons of 
Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these 
were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.' In this 
chapter there is given us the origin of the nations; and from 
these have come all the races and nations of men. That this 



70 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

has been doubted and disputed, does not affect the fact. The 
record bears every fair and genuine test that is put upon it ; 
and every such test, however searching, only serves more 
closely to demonstrate the perfect truthfulness of the record 
made by Moses thirty-four hundred years ago, and that still 
stands in the book of Genesis/ ' — * 'Empires of the Bible," 
pagel. 

Referring to this record, Prof. George Rawlinson, in his 
''Seven Great Monarchies," chapter 3, says this well deserves 
to be called "the most authentic record that we possess, for the 
affiliation of the nations." "The Mosaical narrative conveys 
the exact truth, — a truth alike in accordance with the earliest 
classical traditions, and with the latest results of modern 
comparative philology." 



THE LAW OF GOD FROM 
CREATION TO SINAI 

The words, "Sabbath given to man," and "Sabbath reform 
at Sinai," on line B, between 3 and 9, show that the Sabbath 
was not only given in the garden of Eden, but was kept by 
the people of God, from creation to the time when the ten 
commandments were given on Mount Sinai. Going back to 
creation, we trace the history of the law of God and the Sab- 
bath down to Sinai. 

Adam, the first man, father of the whole human race, must 
have known the law of God ; for the Lord, speaking of him in 
Isa. 43:27, says, "Thy first father hath sinned." In 1 John 
3 :4, we learn that ' ' sin is the transgression of the law, ' ' and 
in Rom. 4:15, that "where no law is, there is no transgres- 
sion;" consequently, there can be no question but that our 
first parents were familiar with the law of God, which after- 
ward was given on Mount Sinai. 

The first sin of Adam and Eve was a violation of the tenth 
commandment, "Thou shalt not covet," as they desired the 
fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, which was not 
theirs, it having been forbidden them; therefore, when they 
partook of that fruit, they became transgressors of the eighth 
commandment, which says, ' ' Thou shalt not steal. ' ' In believ- 
ing and obeying Satan, they thus chose him as their god, 
instead of the Lord, and so broke the first commandment, 
"Thou shalt have no other gods before me." 

The sins of Adam and Eve were not only the cause of their 
own death, but of the death of the whole human family. In 



SABBATH REFORM IN EGYPT 71 

committing them, they therefore violated the sixth command- 
ment, "Thou shalt not kill." James 2:10 says that "whoso- 
ever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he 
is guilty of all ; " so it is evident that our first parents not only 
knew the law of God, and were amenable to it, but trans- 
gressed it, and came under its condemnation. 

As Adam and Eve were driven from the garden of Eden, 
and went forth to dwell upon the earth, where rested the curse 
of sin, they brought with them the knowledge of the law of 
God, and the plan of salvation, as far as it had been revealed 
to them, to transmit to their posterity. 

Cain killed his brother, and because of his sin, the Lord 
cursed both him and the ground, which He would not have 
done, had Cain not known the law that said, "Thou shalt not 
kill." 

Tracing the history of the antediluvians down to the flood, 
we find that they were destroyed because of their sins. This 
could not have been had there been no law; for, as already 
shown, "where no law is, there is no transgression." 

Abraham's ancestors were idolaters, and served other gods; 
therefore the Lord called him away from his kin and country, 
that he might obey Him, and not worship idols, and follow 
false gods, and thus transgress the first and second command- 
ments. And in Gen. 26:5, the Lord says, "Abraham obeyed 
my voice, and kept . . . my commandments, my statutes, 
and my laws." 



SABBATH REFORM IN EGYPT 

On line B, between 7 and 9, are the words, "Sabbath Reform 
at Sinai. ' ' These have reference to the time when the children 
of Israel were about to be delivered from Egyptian bondage. 

"The oppression of Israel in Egypt had now been long and 
severe. At the same time they were surrounded by every spe- 
cies of idolatry. Consequently many of the people of Israel, 
especially of the younger generation, had become discouraged 
and bewildered as to the faith that had inspired Abraham, 
Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and the elders of Israel. Thus, to a con- 
siderable extent, they had lost the purity of the knowledge of 
the law and worship of Jehovah. Therefore, the first thing 
that devolved upon Moses and Aaron, was to revive the sinking 
faith of the people by repeating to them the promises of the 
Lord to their fathers and to them ; and to inculcate spirituality 



72 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

of service and worship by setting before their minds the claims 
of the law of God. As Jehovah was now to be their only King, 
it was essential that they should become acquainted with the 
principles of His law and government, in order that they might 
be intelligent and loyal subjects of their new King." 

"The sign by which the Lord was then, and is ever, to be 
known by those who worship Him, is the Sabbath. 'Hallow? 
My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, 
that ye may know that I am the Lord your God. ' Eze. 20 :20. 

"Upon this point came the first real conflict between Pha- 
raoh and Israel, — between Pharaoh and God, in fact. In 
teaching the people the will of the Lord, and how they were 
to serve him, Moses and Aaron taught them the observance of 
the Sabbath of the Lord. This led them to cease work on the 
Sabbath, that they might enter into the rest and worship of 
the Lord. This no sooner came to the knowledge of Pharaoh 
than he charged Moses and Aaron with hindering the people 
from their work by causing them to rest from their burdens,! 
'And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore, do ye, 
Moses and Aaron, let [hinder] the people from their work? 
Get you unto your burdens. And Pharaoh said, Behold, the 
people now are many, and ye do make them rest from their 
burdens.' Ex. 5:4, 5. 

"He also said, "They be idle; therefore they cry, saying, 
Let us go and sacrifice to our God.' Ex. 5:8. And again, 
'Ye are idle, ye are idle; therefore ye say, Let us go and do 
sacrifice to the Lord.' Verse 17. And this he charged them 
with doing, out of regard for 'vain words.' All this shows 
that Moses and Aaron were by words, teaching the people to 
rest, — to shabath, — the seventh day, in observance of the Sab- 
bath of the Lord ; that accordingly, the. people ceased from 
their work on that day, which caused Pharaoh to charge the 
people with being 'idle,' and to blame Moses and Aaron for 
being the cause of it through what they had said to them, and 
which he characterized as 'vain words.' . . . 

"Accordingly, 'Pharaoh commanded the same day the task- 
masters of the people, and their officers, saying, Ye shall no 
more give the people straw to make bricks, as heretofore; let 
them go and gather straw for themselves. And the tale of the 
bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon 
them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof; for they be idle; 
therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. 
Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labor 



SABBATH REFORM IN EGYPT 73 

therein; and let them not regard vain words.' " — "Empires 
of the Bible, ' ' pages 142-145. 

This was the beginning of the first Sabbath reform known 
to sacred history. God wrought wonderfully for the children 
of Israel in delivering them from Egyptian bondage. And 
when they were out but a few days on their journey through 
the wilderness to the land of- Canaan, He called their attention 
to His law, which was afterward given on Mount Sinai, in the 
following words : "If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice 
of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in His 
sight, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all 
His statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which 
I have brought upon the Egyptians." Ex. 15 :26. 

About the middle of the second month after Israel's 
departure from Egypt, they came to the wilderness of Sin. 
"Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread 
from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather 
a certain rate every day, that I may prove them whether they 
will walk in My law, or no." "And he [Moses] said unto 
them, This is that' which the Lord hath said, tomorrow is the 
rest of the holy Sabbath unto the Lord, bake that which ye will 
bake today and seethe that which ye will seethe; and that 
which remaineth over, lay up for you to be kept until the 
morning. And they laid it up till the morning, as Moses bade : 
and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein, and 
Moses said, Eat that today; for today is a Sabbath unto the 
Lord ; today ye shall find none in the field. Six days ye shall 
gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it 
there shall be none. And it came to pass, that there went 
out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and 
they found none. And the Lord said unto Moses, How long 
refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for 
that the Lord hath given you the Sabbath, therefore He giveth 
you on the sixth day the bread of two days ; abide every man 
in his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the 
seventh day." Ex. 16:4, 23-30. 

There can be no question but that the commandments here 
spoken of, are the same that contain the Sabbath or fourth 
commandment, which was in existence then, and had been all 
the way down from creation, and later, was written by the 
finger of God on tables of stone, and given to Israel in the 
most public manner, for the benefit and enlightenment of the 
whole world. 



74 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Every week during their forty years' journey in the wilder- 
ness, the children of Israel witnessecL three special miracles,, 
given to impress their minds with the sacredness of the Sab- 
bath. Twice as much manna fell on the sixth day as on the 
other days of the week; none fell on the Sabbath; and the 
double portion gathered on the sixth day for the Sabbath, was 
preserved sweet and pure ; when, if any were kept over at other 
times, it became unfit for use. 



THE LAW GIVEN ON MOUNT 
SINAI 

On line A, 7 to 9, is a representation of the giving of the 
law on Mount Sinai, and on lines G, H and I, from 6 to 10, will 
be found a representation of the two tables of stone on which 
was engraven the law of God. 

In terrible majesty God descended upon Mount Sinai, as He 
was about to reveal to the world His law. It was evidently 
His purpose to make the occasion a scene of awful grandeur, in 
keeping with the exalted character of the law itself. 

The children of Israel were greatly honored in being made 
the recipients and guardians of a law that was not only spoken 
by the voice of God Himself, but was also written on tables of 
stone with His own finger, and delivered to them to be trans- 
mitted to after generations. 

As the people approached Mount Sinai, the cloudy pillar 
rested upon its summit. The mountain itself would make a 
lasting impression upon the children of Israel, as it stood there 
in all its grandeur, with its vast rugged heights pointing heav- 
enward. The record says, "And it came to pass on the third 
day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, 
and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trum- 
pet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the 
camp trembled. . . . And Mount Sinai was altogether on 
a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and 
the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the 
whole mountain quaked greatly. And when the voice of the 
trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses 
spake, and God answered him by a voice." Ex. 19:16, 18, 19. 

Milman, in his "History of the Jews," page 127, gives the 
following description of the descending of the Lord upon 
Mount Sinai when He gave His law : 

"On the third day the whole people assemble in trembling 
expectation; the summit of the mountain appears clothed in 



THE TWO COVENANTS 75 

the thickest darkness; tremendous thunders and lightnings, 
phenomena new to the shepherds of Goshen, whose pastures 
had escaped the preternatural tempest in Egypt, burst forth, 
and the terrors are heightened by a wild sound, like that of a 
trumpet, mingling with, and prolonging the terrific din of the 
tempest. The mountain seems to have shown every appear- 
ance of a volcanic eruption; blazing fires, huge columns of 
smoke, convulsions of the earth. Yet so far ... as scien- 
tific observations have gone, it is decided, from the geological 
formation of the mountain, that it has never been subject to the 
agency of internal fire. The dauntless leader takes his stand 
in the midst of this confusion of the elements; the trumpet 
peals still louder, and is answered by a voice distinct and audi- 
ble, but from whence it proceeded no man knew. It summons 
Moses to the top of the mountain. . . . Immediately on his 
descent, the mysterious voice utters those ten precepts . 
called the Decalogue, a summary, or rather the first principles 
of the whole Law. ' ' 

Another speaking of this same time, says: 

"On the morning of the third day, as the eyes of all the 
people were turned toward the mount, its summit was covered 
with a thick cloud, which grew more black and dense, sweep- 
ing downward until the entire mountain was wrapped in dark- 
ness and awful mystery. Then a sound as of a trumpet was 
heard, summoning the people to meet with God ; and Moses led 
them forth to the base of the mountain. From the thick dark- 
ness flashed vivid lightnings, while peals of thunder echoed 
and re-echoed among the surrounding heights. 'And Mount 
Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended 
upon it in fire; and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke 
of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.' 'The 
glory of the Lord was like devouring fire on the top of the 
mount' in the sight of the assembled multitude. And 'the voice 
of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder.' 
So terrible were the tokens of Jehovah 's presence that the hosts 
of Israel shook with fear, and fell upon their faces before the 
Lord. Even Moses exclaimed, 'I exceedingly fear and quake.' 
Heb. 12:21. 

"And now the thunders ceased; the trumpet was no longer 
heard; the earth was still. There was a period of solemn 
silence, and then the voice of God was heard. Speaking out of 
the thick darkness that enshrouded him, as he stood upon the 
mount, surrounded by a retinue of angels, the Lord made 
known His law." — Patriarchs and Prophets," page 304. 



THE TWO COVENANTS 

The subject of the two covenants is an important one, and 
is but little understood by many; yet, when fully compre- 
hended, it reveals some very important truths. 



THE STORY OF THE AGES 



The meaning of the word "covenant" is somewhat exten- 
sive in its latitude. "Webster defines it in a number of different 
ways ; yet the sa'me general principle of a promise, or an agree- 
ment, underlies each definition. The first definition is as fol- 
lows: "To enter into a formal agreement; to stipulate; to 
bind one's self by a contract." This shows that a covenant 
does not always necessarily mean a contract between two per- 
sons, but one person may covenant, or promise, to do a certain 
thing with, or without, an express consideration, or promise 
from another. 

The following Scriptures are in harmony with the above 
definition: God made a covenant with Noah (Gen. 9:8-17); 
and He made a covenant with Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3; 22:15- 
18), which was established with Isaac (Gen. 17:21; 26:1-5), 
and was confirmed unto Jacob (Gen. 28:10-15). While it is 
true that this covenant was conditional, and implied obedience 
and faithfulness on the part of Abraham, and all who would 
reap its benefits, yet God was the only One that made the cove- 
nant, or promise. 

Another definition of the word " covenant" is, "To grant 
or promise by covenant." This may help us to understand 
Deut. 4:12, 13. "And the Lord spake unto you out of the 
midst of the fire. . . . And He declared unto you His cove- 
nant, which He commanded you to perform, even ten com- 
mandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone." 
Here the ten commandments are called a covenant. They 
"are exceedingly broad." They are not only a rule, or law, 
by which the life is to be governed, but, in Christ, through the 
provisions of the gospel, they are ten promises, or a covenant, 
on the part of God, that He will give us the power to enable* 
us to keep His law, or to do the things commanded. The com- 
mandments say, ' ' Thou shalt not kill ; ' ' that is, if we have faith 
in God, the power to keep us from killing is in the word itself, 
"Thou shalt not." To illustrate: Ps. 33:6 says, "By the 
word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of 
them by the breath of His mouth. ' ' And in Gen. 1 :3 will be 
found these words: "And God said, Let there be light; and 
there was light." So the word of God has in it the power to 
accomplish the thing spoken. The ten commandments, being 
the word of God, therefore, through Christ, the Word, have in 
them the same power that His word had at creation. Out of 
Christ the law brings only condemnation and death to the 
sinner. 



THE TWO COVENANTS 



One might say, Why is it that the power in the words of 
the law do not keep all men from violating it? Two answers 
might be given: First, God having created man a free moral 
agent, would not use His power to compel him to obey; and 
second, man must have faith in God to accept and receive 
the power of His word, in order to be benefited by it. It is 
for these reasons that the ten commandments are called the 
covenant; yet, even in this covenant, as in the covenant God 
made with Abraham, in order to be of avail, there must be 
implied faith and obedience. 

Still another definition of the word covenant is, "A MU- 
TUAL AGREEMENT OF TWO OR MORE PERSONS, OR 
PARTIES, in writing and under seal, to do, or to refrain from 
doing, some act or thing ; a contract ; stipulation. ' ' This gives 
the fullest and most complete definition of them all, showing a 
covenant to be a contract, or an agreement between two or 
more persons, upon conditions agreeable to each. It demies 
what is known as the first, or old covenant. 

Jer. 31:31 says, " Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, 
that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, . . . 
not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers, 
in the day that I took them by the hand, to bring them out of 
the land of Egypt; which My covenant they brake." 

The Scripture just quoted, shows that soon after the chil- 
dren of Israel left Egypt, the Lord made a covenant, or agree- 
ment, with them. The following quotations give full particu- 
lars in regard to this first, or old, covenant: Ex. 19:1 says, 
"In the third month, when the children of Israel were gone 
forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they unto 
the wilderness of Sinai." The people encamped before the 
mount. "And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called 
unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to 
the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel ; ye have 
seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on 
eagles' wings, and brought you unto Myself. Now therefore, 
if ye will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then 
ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people; 
. . . and ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and an 
holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto 
the children of Israel. ' ' 

This is the conditional pledge which the Lord asked of 
them: "IF YE WILL OBEY MY VOICE, then ye shall be a 
peculiar treasure unto Me." "And Moses came and called for 



78 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these 
words which the Lord commanded him." Ex. 19:7. Now 
observe the answer: ''And all the people answered together, 
and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do." Ex. 
19 :8. Here the people with one voice, accepted the conditions 
offered them, and pledged themselves to fulfill them. "And 
Moses returned the words of the people unto the Lord. ' ' Ex. 
19:8. 

The preliminaries to the contract, or agreement, were thus 
closed. The remainder of the chapter is devoted to the prepa- 
ration of the children of Israel to hear the voice of God speak- 
ing His law of ten commandments from Mount Sinai. This 
law was the voice which the people were asked to obey. 

While it is true that the law of God is His covenant, as has 
been explained, yet, it is not in itself the old covenant, but 
rather, the conditions upon which the first, or old, covenant 
was made. 

After the Lord had spoken the law with His own voice, and 
the people had seen the wonderful display of divine majesty, 
they left the mountain and stood afar off. 

The first promise on the part of the people, to obey the 
voice of God, was made before the law was given; but now, 
since God had spoken His ten commandments in flaming fire 
from the mount, both He and the people were ready for the 
consummation of this important contract, or covenant. 

The Lord did not want to take any advantage of the peo- 
ple, so, lest they had forgotten something of which He had 
spoken, and in order that they might be informed of all which 
He had communicated to Moses in the mount, He instructed 
Moses to go and rehearse the whole matter before the people 
once more. 

Again the people had a chance to refuse to close this most 
solemn compact; but instead of doing this, the record says, 
"All the people answered with one voice, and said, All the 
words which the Lord hath said will we do. ' ' Ex. 24 :3. After 
this, "Moses wrote all the words of the Lord" in a book. 

All the preliminaries being finished, the time had come 
for the ratification, or what Paul called in Heb. 9 :18, the 
dedication of the first testament, or covenant, by the shedding 
of blood. 

So we read that "Moses rose up early in the morning, and 
builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to 
the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the 



THE TWO COVENANTS 79 

children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed 
peace-offerings of oxen unto the Lord." Ex. 24:4, 5. When 
the victim had been sacrificed unto the Lord, the blood was 
carefully secured for an important purpose. "And Moses 
took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the 
blood he sprinkled on the altar." Ex. 24:6. 

One half of the blood was offered upon the altar a direct 
offering to God, and verse 7 continues, "And he took the book 
of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people; and 
they said, All that the Lord hath said we will do, and be 
obedient." Then "Moses took the blood [the other half] and 
sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the 
covenant, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all 
these words. ' ' Paul, in speaking of this event in Heb. 9 :19, 
says, "And he sprinkled both the book and the people." 

"We now have the first, or old, covenant complete and entire. 
And from the above, it can clearly be seen that it was simply 
a solemn contract, or agreement, BETWEEN GOD AND THE 
CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, based upon their promise thrice 
made, to keep the ten commandments, or law of God. 

But the people soon forgot these promises. Only a few 
days after the children of Israel stood trembling before the 
mount listening to the words of the Lord, "Thou shalt have 
no other gods before me," they made a golden calf and wor- 
shipped it. In this short time they had forgotten the solemn 
covenant they had made with God to keep His law. 

When Moses came down from the mount, he was indeed 
horrified to find such great wickedness going on in the camp. 
He saw at once that they had broken their covenant with God, 
and had thus forfeited all right to the blessings that were to 
follow the keeping of it. Moses then threw down the tables 
of stone containing the law of God, and broke them in the sight 
of the people, thus signifying that the old covenant was broken. 

The question may arise, Why was this old covenant made 
with the children of Israel at Sinai ? Here we quote the words 
of another: 

"The great object and secret of the old covenant is re- 
vealed here. The people knew not the weakness and sinfulness 
of their own hearts, nor their need of divine grace and help to 
keep the law; and so, in their ignorance, they readily pledged 
obedience to it. But almost immediately they began to commit 
idolatry, and thus to break the law, or the very conditions laid 
down as their part of the covenant. In themselves, the condi- 
tions were good; but in their own strength the people were 



80 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

unable to fulfill them. The great object of the old covenant, 
therefore, was to teach them their weakness, and their inability 
to keep the law, without the help of 'God. Like the law itself 
over which the old covenant was made, this covenant was de- 
signed to shut them up to the provisions of the new, and lead 
them to Christ. And the lesson which Israel as a nation had 
to learn . in this, each individual must learn before he can 
be saved. There is no salvation for any one while trusting in 
self. Unaided, no one can keep the law. Only in Christ is 
there either remission of sins, or power to keep from sinning." 

Paul, in Heb. 9:1, says: The first [or old] covenant, had 
also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary." 
These ordinances, like the old covenant itself, were not in 
themselves efficacious, being only a "figure for the time then 
present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that 
could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining 
to the conscience; which stood only in meat and drink, and 
divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until 
the time of reformation." Heb. 9:9, 10. 

Heb. 7 :12-25 shows that when Christ entered upon His 
priesthood, the law, regulating all this service, including the 
priesthood, had to be changed. 

Thus the old covenant, with the whole ceremonial law, 
came to an end, it having been given to man because of his 
blindness and inability to comprehend the new covenant with 
all its promises and blessings. They were object lessons, illus- 
trating the true principles of the plan of salvation, or the eter- 
nal purpose of God to save a fallen world from sin. 

THE NEW OR SECOND COVENANT 

While it is true that the law of God is called His covenant, 
and that the word "covenant" is mentioned many times in 
the Scriptures, always with the same underlying principle 
of a promise or an agreement, yet, in the Bible, there are 
only two covenants based on promises, and contrasted one with 
the other, that are brought prominently to view. These are 
called the OLD and the NEW, or the FIRST and the SEC- 
OND. Heb. 8:13 says, "In that He saith, A new covenant, He 
hath made the first old;" and in verse 7 are these words: "For 
if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place 
have been sought for the second." 

"Webster's fourth definition of a covenant helps to explain 
what is known as THE NEW. OR SECOND COVENANT. It 
is as follows: "The covenant of grace is that by which God 
engages to bestow salvation on man, upon conditions that man 



THE TWO COVENANTS 81 

shall believe in Christ, and yield obedience to the terms of 
the gospel." The Bible says, in Heb. 8:8-12, "Behold, the 
days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant 
with the house of Israel. ... I WILL PUT MY LAWS 
INTO THEIR MIND, AND WRITE THEM IN THEIR 
HEARTS. ... I will be merciful to their unrighteous- 
ness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no 
more." These are the "better promises" of the new covenant, 
even God's promises, and the new covenant is as much better 
than the old covenant as God's promises are better than the 
people's. But let it be noted that the new covenant, like the 
old, was made concerning the law of God. 

Seeing that the law of God is the basis or foundation of 
the new covenant, as well as of the old, it is evident that it 
was in no wise affected by the failure of the children of Israel 
to keep it in harmony with their promises made in the old. 

As there are two laws brought to view in the Bible, one 
changeless and eternal, the other provisional and temporal, 
so there are two covenants, each sustaining the same relation 
to the other, as do the two laws. 

Man, in Eden, before he fell, received the first intimation 
of the new covenant, when the promise was given that the 
seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head. Gen. 3 :15. 
Here is what Webster calls the " covenant of grace, and what 
the Bible calls the new, or second, covenant. In it is found 
the promise of pardon, and the assisting grace of God for 
future obedience, to all mankind in all ages of the world, upon 
condition of faith in Christ. 

The old covenant being ratified first, is called the first, 
or old covenant. As the new was not ratified until the death 
of Christ, it is called the second ; but it is second in point of 
ratification only. The new covenant was in the purpose of 
God from the beginning, the same as was the death of Christ. 
As Christ was slain from the foundation of the world (Rev. 
13:8; 17:8; 1 Pet. 1:20), so the new or second covenant was 
confirmed from the foundation of the world. Christ did not 
actually die until four thousand years of this world's history 
had passed, but His blood availed for the salvation of man from 
the time that Adam first sinned, just as though the blood had 
actually been shed. So the shedding of the blood and the con- 
firmation of the new covenant both occurred at the same time. 
From the beginning, Christ was reckoned as having been slain, 
and the covenant as confirmed. So the believers in the days of 



82 THE STORY OF THE AGES ' 

the patriarchs and prophets also had salvation, only through 
the new and second covenant, the same as those living this side 
of the death of Christ. This is illustrated in the covenant with 
Abraham, which was "confirmed of God in Christ/ ' at the 
time it was made, which was four hundred and thirty years 
before Israel came to Sinai. Gal. 3 :17. 

The covenants made with Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, 
and Jacob, were all simply reiterations of the promises and 
principles of the new covenant, which was a part of the plan 
of salvation, and was first revealed to the universe when 
Adam and Eve sinned in the garden of Eden. From that time 
on through both dispensations, it has been doing its work of 
rescuing men from the condemnation of the law of God, writ- 
ing this law in their hearts, so that it becomes a part of their 
very being, and its righteousness is fulfilled in their lives. 

THE CEREMONIAL AND MORAL LAWS CONTRASTED 

The ceremonial law, written by Moses in a book, consisted 
only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal 
ordinances, including all sacrifices and services of the temple, 
with feast days, holy days, new moons, and yearly sabbaths. 

This ceremonial law did not exist until after the fall of 
Adam, as there was no occasion or need for it until the 
entrance of sin into the world. Thus it, being shadowy, ended 
When the true substance, Christ, came. It had its beginning 
with sin, and came to an end at the cross, where Christ died, 
the propitiation for sin. Therefore, it is evident that the cere- 
monial law has no part in the economy of heaven, or in any 
of the other inhabited worlds throughout the whole universe. 
IT BELONGS EXCLUSIVELY TO THIS, THE ONLY 
WORLD WHERE SIN HAS EVER EXISTED, AND IT WILL 
NEVER BE NEEDED AGAIN. 

The moral law of ten commandments, written by the finger 
of God on two tables of stone, and placed in the ark under 
the mercy seat, is entirely different from the ceremonial law, 
it being separate and distinct, and not typical, temporary, or 
shadowy in any respect. The moral law is eternal in its nature, 
and universal in its application. It is intended to govern 
every morally responsible being that God has ever created, in- 
cluding the angels of heaven, as well as the inhabitants of all 
the worlds throughout the vast universe. (See chapter on 
"The Moral Law of God.'') Because of a misunderstanding 
of the difference between the character of the two laws, some 



CEREMONIAL AND MORAL LAWS 83 

have fallen into a grievous error, supposing that the moral 
law itself was done away in Christ. The following com- 
parisons show the difference between the two laws: 

THE MORAL LAW OF TEN THE CEREMONIAL LAW CON- 

COMMANDMENTS TAINED IN ORDINANCES 

1. Was spoken by God. 1. Was spoken by Moses. 
Deut. 5 :22. Lev. 1 :l-3. 

2. Was written ' ' with the 2 - Was ' ' tne handwriting 
finger of God." Ex. 31:18. of ordinances." Col. 2:14. 

o w„„ ,™u+ "^~ n n A 3. Was written by Moses 

3. Was written by God . , , -^ , 01 £ A ~ 
^ +„u fl o ^-p o+^n >> t? v m a book. Deut. 31 :24, 26. 
on tables oi stone. &x. -^ , , . T* . , 
9± -i 9 4. Was placed m the side 

\ tit i *• xi. i of the ark. Deut. 31 :24, 26. 
i £ W 2 S o P m 5 - Was instituted in con- 

1 Kmgs 8 :9. sequence of sin. Lev. 4 :l-20. 

5. By it is the knowledge 6. Was imposed only 
of sin. Rom. 3 :20 ; 7 :7. " until the time of reforma- 

6. Is to "stand fast for tion." Heb. 9:9, 10. 

ever and ever." Ps. 111:7,8. 7. Ceased when the new 

7. Written in the heart covenant was ratified. Matt. 
under the new covenant. 26:27, 28; 27:50, 51; Dan. 
Heb. 8 :10. 9 :27. 

WHAT MEN HAVE SAID OF THE MORAL LAW 

Spurgeon: "The law of God is a divine law — holy, 
heavenly, perfect. . . . There is not a command too many ; 
there is not one top few; but it is so incomparable that its 
perfection is a proof of its divinity." — Spurgeon's Sermons, 
page 280. 

Alexander Campbell: "God's ten words not only in the 
Old Testament, but in all revelation, are the most emphatically 
regarded as the synopsis of all religion and morality." — De- 
bate with Purcell, page 215. 

Dr. Adam Clarke: "It would be almost impossible for a 
man to have that just notion of the demerit of sin so as to 
produce repentance, or to see the nature and necessity of the 
death of Christ, if the law were not applied to his conscience 
by the light of the Holy Spirit; it is then alone that he sees 
himself to be carnal and sold under sin ; and that the law and 
the commandments are holy, just, and good." — Comments on 
Rom. 7:12, 13. 

Scott: "This law is so extensive that we can not measure 
it; so spiritual that we can not evade it, and so reasonable 
that we can not find fault with it." — Comments on Ex. 20:1-17. 

Nevin: "The moral law, summarily comprehended in the 
Ten Commandments uttered from Mount Sinai, requires in all 
its precepts a spiritual obedience." — Biblical Antiquities. 



84 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

John Wesley: "But the moral law contained in the Ten 
Commandments, and enforced by the prophets, He (Christ) 
did not take away. It was not the design of His coming to 
revoke any part of this. This is a law which never can be 
broken, which 'stands fast as the faithful witness in heaven.' 
. . . Every part of this law must remain in force upon all 
mankind and in all ages, as not depending either on time 
or place, or any other circumstances liable to change; but on 
the nature of God and the nature of man, and their unchange- 
able relation to each other. ' ' — Sermons, Vol. 1, sermon 25. 

Martin Luther: "Ques. — Are we under obligation to keep 
the moral law? Ans. — Yes; because that is founded on the 
nature of God; and can not be changed; it is of universal 
application, which was impossible with respect to the cere- 
monial and civil laws. Christ demands obedience to His law." 
— Shorter Catechism, ed. 1834. 

WHAT MEN HAVE SAID OF THE CEREMONIAL LAW 

Dr. Barnes: "The ceremonial laws are such as are appointed 
to meet certain states of society, or to regulate the religious 
rites and ceremonies of a people. These can be changed when 
circumstances are changed, and yet the moral law be un- 
touched." — Comments on Matt. 5:18. 

Bishop Hopkins: "The ceremonial law was wholly taken 
up enjoining those observations of sacrifices and offerings, 
and various methods of purification and cleansings, which 
were typical of Christ, and that sacrifice of His which alone 
was able to take away sin. ' ' — Complete Works of Bishop Hop- 
kins, The Ten Commandments, p. 7, ed. 1841. 

"And concerning this it is that the apostle (Paul) is to 
be understood, when in his epistles he so often speaks of the 
abrogation and disannulling of the law. .He speaks it, I say, 
of the ceremonial law and Aaronical observations." — Idem, 
page 8. 

Nevins: "The ceremonial law of the Jews comprehended 
a vast number of precepts. It stood in meats and drinks, and 
divers washings and carnal ordinances, imposed on them till 
the time of reformation. ' '—Biblical Antiquities. 

Justin Edwards: "The other kind, called ceremonial laws, 
related to outward observances which were not obligatory till 
they were commanded; and then were binding only on the 
Jews till the death of Christ. "—Sabbath Manual, page 133. 

John Wesley: "The ritual or ceremonial law, delivered 
by Moses to the children of Israel, containing all the in- 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL 85 

junctions and ordinances which related to the old sacrifices 
and services of the temple, our Lord indeed did come to de- 
stroy, to dissolve, and utterly abolish." — Sermons, Vol. 1, ser- 
mon 25. 

Martin Luther: "Ques. — Are we under obligation to keep 
the ceremonial, or church law of the Jews? Ans. — No; the 
ordinances which it enjoined were only types and shadows of 
Christ; and when they were fulfilled by His death, and the 
distinction between the Jew and Gentile was removed, the 
ceremonial law was abolished, because it was no longer neces- 
sary. ' ' — Shorter Catechism, ed. 1834. 

Thus we see a plain distinction between the moral law, 
the ten commandments, and the ceremonial law, the law of 
commandments contained in ordinances. The first was change- 
less in its nature, and universal in its application; the second 
was brought into existence because of sin, was typical and 
temporary in its nature, and came to an end when Christ, its 
great Antitype, shed His blood on Calvary's cross. 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL 

Thus far the law of God, and the gospel, or plan of salva- 
tion, have been presented separately; but when we come to 
study the subject of the sanctuary, we find that they are 
inseparably connected. The most sacred object in the earthly 
sanctuary was the ark of the covenant, containing the tables 
of stone, on which was engraved the law of God. 

The covering of the ark, or mercy seat, represented the 
throne of God, from which God communed with His people, 
granting pardon to repentant sinners. His administration of 
mercy, which is the gospel, must have been in harmony with 
the law deposited under the mercy seat. In the ark, with its 
throne of mercy, God represents to the world that His law is 
the foundation of His moral government, — the principle from 
which justice and mercy are dispensed, through the gospel, to 
humanity. 

The blending of justice and love, or mercy, is to be seen 
not only in the ark, but in the law itself. The second com- 
mandment represents God as "showing mercy unto thousands 
of them that love Me and keep My commandments. ' ' In Matt. 
23 :23, Jesus classes mercy, which is the foundation principle of 
the gospel, among the "weightier matters of the law." 



86 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

That the law and gospel are inseparable is evident from 
the following considerations: Without the law there would 
be no need of the gospel ; for the gospel is the means of grace 
which God has provided to save a fallen race from sin and 
death. But if there is no law, there is no sin; and if no sin, 
there would be no death, and consequently, no need of salva- 
tion from sin and death. 

The gospel is the power of God to save men from sin and 
death, and at the same time maintain the honor and integrity 
of the law and throne of God. The law of God is the eternal 
and unchangeable rule of His moral government. To uphold 
these eternal principles, and yet save the transgressor from 
death, God "gave His only begotten Son" to die upon the cross, 
to pay the penalty for the broken law; for the law demanded 
the life of the transgressor. "The wages of sin is death." 
Rom. 6:23. The law points out sin; the gospel brings the 
remedy for sin, which is Christ Jesus our Lord. The law of 
God is the great mirror of righteousness, in which are revealed 
our sins. The gospel is the power of God to save us from our 
sins. 

God's gift of Christ to save the world, through the gospel, 
was a manifestation of the great fundamental principle of 
His law, — love. Christ's incarnation, His life on earth, His 
sacrificial death, and consequent pardon to repentant sinners, 
were all the outgrowth of love. 

But while love is the foundation of the law of God, and 
provides mercy for repentant sinners, it does not excuse the 
guilty, or provide mercy for those who persist in sin. Ex. 
34:5-7. The same commandment that says God shows "mercy 
unto thousands of them that love Me and keep My com- 
mandments," says that God is a "jealous God, visiting the 
iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and 
fourth generation of them that hate Me." Ex. 20:5, 6. "Know- 
ing, therefore, the terrors of the Lord," Paul writes, "we 
persuade men. " 2 Cor. 5:11. To the sinner he says, "The law 
worketh wrath." Rom. 4:15. 

In a sermon on "Future Punishment for Sin," Mr. 
Spurgeon says: 

"God has ordained both the terrors of the law and the 
tenderness of the gospel, that by means of both, men may be 
saved. The themes of mercy need, in order to fully manifest 
their brightness, the dark background of the terrors of the 
law, for men will never value a Redeemer so well as when they 
have a very clear consciousness of the ruin from which He has 



THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL 87 

redeemed them. The preciousness of mercy is best known by 
those who discern the terrors of justice. If we really feel that 
God is angry with the sinner, and loathes and hates his sin, 
and will certainly take fearful vengeance upon him on account 
of it, we shall the better understand the force of that Divine 
mercy which led Him to give His own dear Son, and which 
now leads Him to cry unto the sons of men, ' Turn ye ! Why 
will ye die?' " 

Christ came under the law to die in man's stead, and thus 
meet the demands of the law, that the transgressor might not 
perish. God sent "His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh," 
not only to die for man, but to ' ' condemn sin in the flesh, that 
the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk 
not after the flesh, but after the spirit. ' ' Rom. 8 :3, 4. 

Man having fallen so low in sin, it was impossible for him 
fully to comprehend the character of God, either as revealed 
in nature, or as expressed in His written law; so Christ not 
only had to die for the sinner, but He had to become a living 
object lesson of His Father's law. "HE WAS THE LAW 
ALIVE." Speaking of Jesus, the Psalmist says, "I delight to 
do Thy will, my God; yea, Thy law is within my heart." 
Ps. 40:8. And "out of the heart," says the wise man, "are 
the issues of life." Then the one great issue, or object, of the 
life of Christ was to reveal to men the truth of the character 
of God and of His righteous and holy law. In other words, 
Jesus, the Son of God, was the law of God in action. 

Briefly summarized, the true relation of the law and the 
gospel has been thus expressed: "The law is the gospel en- 
folded; the gospel is the law unfolded. The law is the gospel 
enclosed ; the gospel is the law disclosed. The law is the gospel 
concealed; the gospel is the law revealed." 

God's deep and unselfish love was revealed to man in the 
matchless gift of the Crucified One. It is in the light of 
Calvary that the perfection of the law appears in its divine 
fullness. Our eyes are able to behold "wondrous things" out 
of the law, when we survey it from the side of our bleeding, 
suffering Lord, and realize that He died that shameful death, 
in fulfillment of the perfect law of love. The death of Jesus 
vindicated its claims, and showed its immutability. 

These facts have been briefly presented because the law and 
the gospel are not clearly understood in these days. 



88 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THE THEOCRACY OF ISRAEL OR 

THE KINGDOM OF GOD 

ON EARTH 

At the ratification of the old covenant on the part of 
Israel, when the ceremonial law was read to them, and the 
moral law was spoken by God Himself, they became fully 
established as the chosen people of God, with Jehovah as their 
King. That was the beginning of a true theocracy in Israel, as 
a nation, where God was the only ruler.. 

Another, writing on this subject, says: 

"The government of Israel was administered in the name, 
and by the authority, of God. The work of Moses, of the 
seventy elders, and of the rulers and judges, was simply to 
enforce the laws that God had given ; they had no authority to 
legislate for the nation. This was, and continued to be, the 
condition of Israel's existence as a nation. From age to age 
men, inspired by God, were sent to instruct the people, and 
to direct in the enforcement of the laws. 

"The Lord had, through the prophets, foretold that Israel 
would be governed by a king ; but it does not follow that this 
form of government was best for them, or according to His 
will. He permitted the people to follow their own choice, 
because they refused to be guided by His counsel. Hosea 
declared that God gave them a king in His anger. Hos. 13 :11. 

"Though a monarchial form of government for Israel had 
been foretold in prophecy, God had reserved to Himself the 
right to choose their king. The Hebrews so far respected the 
authority of God, as to leave the selection entirely to Him. 
The choice fell upon Saul." 

Then followed David, Solomon, and many other kings, until 
we come to the reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, at which 
time the overthrow of Jerusalem was predicted by Jehovah 
(Jer. 25:8-11), and immediately accomplished, in 606 B. C. 
The seventy years' captivity of the Jews began at this time. 

"This," we are told, "was the first time Jerusalem was 
taken by Nebuchadnezzar. Twice subsequently, the city, 
having revolted, was captured by the same king. . . . Of 
these subsequent overthrows, the first was under Jehoiachin, 
son of Jehoiakim, 599 B. C, when all the sacred vessels were 
either taken or destroyed, and the best of the inhabitants, with 
the king, were led into captivity. The second was under 
Zedekiah, when the city endured the most formidable siege 
it ever sustained, except that by Titus, in A. D. 70. . . . 
The city and temple were in Zedekiah 's time utterly destroyed, 
and the entire population of the city and country, with the 



THE THEOCRACY OF ISRAEL 89 

exception of a few husbandmen, were carried captive to 
Babylon, 588 B. C." 

At this time, the kingdom of Israel, as an independent na- 
tion, came to an end, and was ever after tributary to other 
powers, as described by Ezekiel the prophet, in the following 
verses: "And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose 
day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, thus saith the 
Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown; this 
shall not be the same; exalt him that is low, and abase him 
that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it; and it 
shall be no more, until He come Whose right it is; and I will 
give it Him." Eze. 21:25-27. 

The diadem, or crown, was removed by Nebuchadnezzar. 
Then the government of Israel was first overturned from 
Babylon to Medo-Persia, and overturned a second time from 
Medo-Persia to Grecia, and a third time from Grecia to Rome, 
under whose power it remained until the destruction of Jeru- 
salem by the Roman army, under Titus, in A. D. 70. And from 
that time they have been scattered among all nations, as was 
prophesied in Eze. 12:10, 14, 15. "Thus saith the Lord God; 
This burden concerneth the prince in Jerusalem, and all the 
house of Israel that are among them. ... I will scatter 
toward every wind all that are about him to help him, and 
all his bands ; and I will draw out the sword after them. And 
they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall scatter them 
among the nations, and disperse them in the countries." 

God's people will never again have a king or a kingdom 
in this world in its present condition, as the prophet said, "It 
shall be no more, until He come, Whose right it is; and I will 
give it Him.' , 

The One "Whose right it is" ta be crowned ruler of this 
kingdom will be the final Conqueror. "For as much then as 
the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He [Christ] also 
Himself likewise took part of the same, that through death, 
He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the 
devil." Heb. 2:14. "But thou, Bethlehem, ... out of 
thee shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel ; 
Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." 
Micah 5:2. 

The supremacy of this world, which God gave to man in 
the beginning, and which was lost when Satan overcame man, 
will be restored to man again by Christ who has overcome 
Satan. "And Thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of 



90 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

the daughter of Zion, unto Thee shall it come, even the first 
dominion." Mieah 4:8. "And, behold, thou shalt conceive, 
. . . and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS 
... He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the 
Highest; and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of 
His father David; . . . and of His kingdom there shall 
be no end." Luke 1:31-33. 

Christ will not take possession of His kingdom until the 
great judgment day. "When the Son of Man shall come in 
His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He 
sit upon the throne of His glory." Matt. 25:31. "And the 
kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under 
the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of 
the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and 
all dominions shall serve and obey Him." Dan. 7 :27. 



THE BABYLONIAN EMPIRE 

The kingdom of Babylon was founded by Nimrod, the 
great grandson of Noah, over two thousand years before 
Christ. Nimrod was the son of Cush, and began to be a mighty 
man in the earth. The Scriptures tell us that he was a mighty 
hunter before the Lord, and that "the beginning of his king- 
dom was Babel (margin, Babylon)." Gen. 10:8-10. 

The Babylonian kingdom, therefore, dates back to this 
far-distant period in the world's history, and is doubtless the 
most ancient kingdom in the world. It passed through many 
changes with the onward march of time, as it existed down 
through the ages. Kings ascended her throne only to be de- 
throned and succeeded by other monarchs, until, at last, 
Nebuchadnezzar, who proved to be the greatest of all her 
kings, and a fit emblem in prophecy to the head of gold, suc- 
ceeded his father, Nabopolassar, and became ruler of Babylon 
in 604 B. C. 

Some of the transitions of the Babylonian Empire are de- 
scribed in Johnson's Cyclopedia (Art. Babylon), in the follow- 
ing words : 

" About 1270 B. C, the Assyrian kings became masters of 
Chaldea, or Babylonia, of which Babylon was the capital. 
This country was afterwards ruled by an Assyrian dynasty 
of kings, who reigned at Babylon. . . . 

1 ' Several centuries elapsed in which the history of Babylon 
is almost a blank. In the time of Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria, 
Nebonassar ascended the throne of Babylon in 747 B. C. He 



THE BABYLONIAN EMPIRE 91 

is celebrated for the chronological era which bears his name, 
and which began in 747 B. C. 

"About 720 B. C. Merodach-baladan became king of 
Babylon, and sent ambassadors to Hezekiah, king of Judah. 
(See 2 Kings 20, and Isa. 39.) A few years later, Sargon, 
king of Assyria, defeated and dethroned Merodach-baladan. 
Sennacherib completed the subjection of Babylon, which he 
annexed to the Assyrian Empire about 690 B. C. The con- 
quest of Nineveh and the subversion of the Assyrian Empire, 
which was effected about 625 B. C, by Cyaxeres the Mede, 
and his ally Nabopolassar, the rebellious governor of Babylon, 
enabled the latter to found [what is known in history as] 
the Babylonian Empire [see date 625 B. C. on the chart, under 
the Time Line at the intersection of Q and 8], . . . and 
included the valley of the Euphrates, Susiana, Syria, and 
Palestine. His reign lasted about twenty-one years, and was 
probably pacific, as the history of it is nearly a blank; but 
in 605 B. C, his army defeated Neco, king of Egypt, who had 
invaded Syria. He was succeeded by his more famous son, 
Nebuchadnezzar (604 B. C), who was the greatest of all the 
kings of Babylon. " 

For two years, from 606 B. C. to 604 B. C, Nebuchadnezzar, 
and his father, Nabopolassar, reigned conjointly. This estab- 
lished in history two dates for the beginning of Nebuchad- 
nezzar 's reign, the Jews computing the beginning of his reign 
from the time when he first succeeded to the throne, 606 B. C, 
while the Chaldeans dated it from the time when he began his 
sole reign, 604 B. C. 

In the first year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, 606 B. C, 
according to the Jewish date, and in the third year of the 
reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah (Dan. 1:1), Jerusalem was 
taken by Nebuchadnezzar. The king of Judah was led into 
captivity, and the Jewish theocracy received its first overturn- 
ing, which later was followed by other overturnings, and fin- 
ally, its complete overthrow by the Romans under Titus. (See 
Eze. 21:25-27.) Babylon was thus brought into contact with 
the people of God, and thereby into the field of prophecy. 

In describing the successors of Nebuchadnezzar, the author- 
ity above quoted says: 

"He died in 561 B. C, and was succeeded by his son Evil- 
merodach, who reigned only two years. Nabonadiujs (or 
Labynetus), who became king in 555 B. C, formed an alliance 
with Croesus against Cyrus the Great. He appeared to have 
shared the royal power with his son, Belshazzar, whose mother 
was a daughter of Nebuchadnezzar. Cyrus besieged Babylon, 
which he took by stratagem, in 538 B. C. [as seen on the chart, 
below the Time Line, and on the historical diagram, at the 
intersection of 10 and Q], and with the death of Belshazzar, 



92 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

whom the Persians killed, the kingdom of Babylon ceased 
to exist." 



DANIEL THE PROPHET 

The prophet Daniel first appears in Scripture as one of 
the noble captives of Judah, in the first year of Nebuchad- 
nezzar, king of Babylon, at the commencement of the seventy 
years of captivity, 606 B. C. During the most of this time 
Daniel resided at the court of Babylon, acting as prime min- 
ister of that great monarchy. 

Daniel was a man of piety and uprightness, and, through 
inspiration, was ranked with Noah and Job by Ezekiel, a 
contemporary of Daniel. Thus in Eze. 14:19, 20, the Lord 
says: "If I send a pestilence into the land ... to cut 
off from it man and beast, though Noah, Daniel, and Job 
were in it, as I live, saith the Lord God, they shall deliver 
neither son nor daughter, they shall but deliver their own 
souls by their righteousness." 

Christ also recognized Daniel as a prophet of God when, 
in Matt. 24:15, he called him, "Daniel the Prophet;" and 
God likewise honored him in the book that bears his name 
by three times speaking of him as "greatly beloved of God." 

The prophecy of Daniel can, in many respects, be considered 
one of the most remarkable in the Bible, it being the most 
comprehensive, and the first to give a consecutive history of 
the world from Daniel's time to the end. 

The predictions of Daniel's prophecy are, for the most 
part, located by well-defined prophetic periods, reaching down, 
from his time, many centuries into the future. In the prophecy 
of Daniel is found the first definite chronological prophecy of 
the first advent of Christ. 

Daniel himself lived till a few years subsequent to the 
subversion of the Babylonian kingdom by the Medes and 
Persians. His death is supposed to ha^ve occurred at Shushan, 
or Susa, in Persia, about the year 530 B. C, at the age of about 
ninety-four years. 



GREAT IMAGE OF DANIEL 2 

BABYLON 

"And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, 
Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was 
troubled, and his sleep break from him." Dan. 2:1. 



GREAT IMAGE OF DANIEL 2 93 

This dream was given to Nebuchadnezzar one year after 
Daniel had completed his three years' course which was to 
fit him for a place among the wise men of Babylon. It made 
a great impression upon Nebuchadnezzar's mind, but had com- 
pletely gone from him. After the failure of the magicians, the 
astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to show him the 
dream, he commanded that all the wise men of Babylon should 
be put to death. Daniel and his three companions, although 
reckoned among the wise men, had not been called in to reveal 
the dream, but were the first to be sought out by the execution- 
ers. Upon hearing the king's decree, Daniel made the matter 
known to his fellows, and asked that they " desire mercies of 
the God of heaven concerning this secret." In response to 
their united petitions, the secret was "revealed unto Daniel 
in a night vision. ' ' 

By turning to the chart at the right of line 8, extending 
from V to Y, will be found a picture of the image which 
Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream, and which Daniel described 
in the following words : 

"Thou, king, sawest, and behold a great image. This 
great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee ; 
and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of 
fine gold, his breast and arms of silver, his belly and his thighs 
of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. 
Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which 
smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and 
brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, 
the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became 
like the chaff of the summer threshing-floors ; and the wind car- 
ried them away, that no place was found for them; and the 
stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and 
filled the whole earth. This is the dream; and we will tell 
the interpretation thereof before the king." Dan. 2:31-36. 

The dream in which this great image was seen, was first 
given to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who believed in 
the Chaldean religion, and was, therefore, an idolater. Conse- 
quently, an image would attract his attention at once, and 
make a strong impression upon him. The dream being with- 
held from the king, and the failure of the wise men of his 
kingdom to bring the matter back to his mind, was providen- 
tial, as God intended to use His servant Daniel, not only to 
reveal the dream, but also to give the interpretation of it. 

By referring to lines R and S, on the chart or historic 
diagram, between 8 and 10, will be seen a yellow space, which 
represents Babylon. Above, on lines Q and 8, is given the time 



94 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

of its rise, 625 B. C. ; and at 9 and S is found the length of time 
which it existed, — eighty-seven years. 

Daniel, in interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's dream, said: 
"Thou art this head of gold." Dan. 2:38. This head of gold 
will be found at the intersection Y, Z and 9. 

Verses 39 and 40 speak of the sides of brass and of the 
legs of iron as the third and fourth kingdoms. One part of 
the image could not represent a kingdom, and another part 
a man. This would be inconsistent. The head of gold, there- 
fore, must symbolize, not Nebuchadnezzar himself, but the 
kingdom over which he ruled. 

The head of gold was a fit representation of that mighty 
empire; for it was indeed "a golden kingdom of a golden 
age." The city of Babylon, its capital, reached a height of 
glory and magnificence, never before or since equaled by any 
other city. From "Prideaux's Connections/' Vol. 1, page 
119, we gather the following description: The city was laid 
out in an exact square fifteen miles each way, or sixty miles 
in circumference. The wall surrounding it was three hundred 
and fifty feet high and eighty-seven feet thick. Outside of 
this enclosure was a vast ditch, of equal cubic capacity with 
the wall. This was lined with brick on each side, and filled 
with water. In the wall on each side of this great square, were 
twenty-five gates, all made of solid brass. There were- fifty 
streets, each fifteen miles long and one hundred and fifty feet 
wide, twenty-five running each way, and crossing each other 
at right angles. The city was, therefore, divided into six hun- 
dred and seventy-six squares, each square being two and a 
quarter miles in circumference. The city had two hundred and 
twenty-five square miles of enclosed surface, all laid out with 
luxuriant gardens, and interspersed with- magnificent dwell- 
ings. 

This city was fitly described by the pen of inspiration as 
"the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excel- 
lency. ' ' 

Babylon came into the field of prophecy, 606 B. C, when 
Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem, and led Judah into 
captivity, as mentioned in Jeremiah 25 :8-lL 

MEDO-PERSIA 

"And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to 
thee," said Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar. Dan. 2:39. After the 
fall of Babylon, the kingdom represented by the head of gold, 



GREAT IMAGE OF DANIEL 2 95 

another universal kingdom, represented by the breast and arms 
of silver, appeared, as shown on the chart on lines Y, Z and 11. 

At the intersection of lines R, S and 11, is a red diagram 
representing Medo-Persia, which, according to history, con- 
quered Babylon, in 538 B. C, as shown on lines Q and 10. 
On lines S and 11 is given the length of time, 207 years, that 
Medo-Persia reigned. 

Two years after the death of Nebuchadnezzar, king of 
Babylon, a war broke out between the Babylonians and the 
Medes, which resulted in the complete overthrow of the Baby- 
lonian kingdom. Cyaxeres, the king of the Medes, who, in 
Daniel 5:31, is called "Darius," summoned to his aid his 
nephew, Cyrus, of the Persian line, in his conquest of Babylon. 
This war continued on the part of the Medes and Persians 
until the third year of the reign of Belshazzar, grandson of 
Nebuchadnezzar, who was then reigning conjointly with his 
father, Nabonadius, over Babylon. At this time Cyrus laid 
siege to Babylon, the only city in all the East which then 
held out against him. 

The Babylonians, knowing the great strength of the walls 
of their city, and that there was no implement of warfare in 
those days that could possibly have any effect upon such a 
fortress, gathered themselves within those impregnable walls, 
and defied the army without. They feared no danger from 
starvation, as they had provisions enough on hand to last them 
for twenty years; and land sufficient within the limits of the 
city to furnish food for the inhabitants for an indefinite period. 
But long years before this, God had not only named the nation 
that should destroy Babylon, but He had also called by name 
the general who should lead his army against it. "Thus 
saith the Lord to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand 
I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose 
the loins of kings, to open before him the two-leaved gates; 
and the gates shall not be shut ; I will go before thee, and make 
the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of 
brass ; and cut in sunder the bars of iron ; and I will give thee 
the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places." 
Isa. 45 :l-3. 

This prophetic statement was written about 712 B. C. 
Cyrus began his siege against Babylon in 539 B. C, and over- 
threw it in 538 B. C, when he was about sixty-one years of 
age. Thus the Lord called Cyrus by name one hundred and 
thirteen years before he was born, and told what he would do 



96 THE STORY OF THE AGES . 

one hundred and seventy-four years before he did it. — "Seven 
Great Monarchies," Fourth Monarchy, chap, viii, pars. 47, 49; 
Fifth Monarchy* chap, vii, pars. 25, 26. 

The feeling of security on the part of the Babylonians was 
the source of their danger. Cyrus, knowing that it would be 
impossible, with his limited weapons of warfare, to take by 
force a city so well fortified, determined to accomplish by 
stratagem what he could not effect by other means. He de- 
cided, therefore, to turn the course of the river Euphrates, 
running through the city, and with walls on either side of 
it equal in size and strength to those surrounding the city. In 
order to do this, it was necessary for him to dig a channel above 
the city in which to turn the water of the river, thus lowering 
the main stream sufficiently for the soldiers to pass under the 
walls, and along the river bed, until they found some of the 
river gates open through which they might enter the city. 

Cyrus, knowing the time of their annual festival, when the 
whole city would be given up to revelry and drunkenness, 
decided that at this time he would carry out his plan to take 
the city. Accordingly, when the time arrived, he ordered his 
men to turn the water aside. Soldiers were stationed where 
the river entered, and where it emerged from the city, and, 
as soon as the water was low enough to be fordable, they 
marched along the river bed into the city. Had the gates 
along the river, leading into the city, been closed, they might 
have marched in and out again without having accomplished 
anything; but, as Cyrus had calculated, they had been left 
open, and the soldiers, in the darkness of the night entered 
the city unobserved, and passed on to the palace of the king, 
where, at its entrance, they fell upon the royal guards. Bel- 
shazzar soon learned of the disturbance, and died, vainly fight- 
ing for his worthless life. 

This feast of Belshazzar, and the overthrow of his king- 
dom, are described in the fifth chapter of Daniel, the scene 
of which closes with these words: "In that night was Bel- 
shazzar, the king of the Chaldeans, slain. And Darius, the 
Median, took the kingdom." 

The kingdom, therefore, that succeeded Babylon, and was 
represented in the image by the breast and arms of silver, was 
Medo-Persia. 

The first installment of the prophetic dream was there- 
fore fulfilled when Babylon had stood eighty-seven years, as 
shown on the chart, on lines R, S and 9. 



GREAT IMAGE OF DANIEL 2 97 

GRECIA 

" Another third kingdom of brass," said the prophet, 
"shall bear rule over all the earth." The third kingdom, 
Grecia, represented by the belly and thighs of brass of the 
image, as shown on lines X, Y, Z and 12, on the chart, now 
comes into the field of vision, to act its part among the nations, 
as the third great universal empire of the earth. 

The progress of the Grecian empire will receive but little 
attention here, as its distinguishing features will be more par- 
ticularly noted under other lines of prophecy. However, by 
referring to the chart, on lines R, S and 12, it will be seen 
that the Grecian empire stood 170 years. 

ROME 

"And the fourth kingdom," says Daniel, "shall be strong 
as iron ; forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all 
things; and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in 
pieces and bruise." Dan. 2:40. 'The legs of iron, with the 
feet and toes, make- the image complete, and represent Rome, 
or the fourth universal kingdom. 

The complete image is seen on lines W, X, Y, Z and 18. 
Above, on lines R and S, at the right of line 13, is the begin- 
ning of a diagram in red, which continues through to line 27, 
showing Rome from its beginning to its close, at the end of this 
world's history. On line Q, at the right of line 13, is given the 
date, 161 B. C, when Rome came into the field of prophecy by 
its league made with the Jews ; but seyen years before this, 168 
B. C, Rome had conquered Macedonia, making this the real 
beginning of the Roman government, as a universal kingdom. 
This date is seen on line Q, a little to the left of line 13. 

To know what kingdom is meant by the legs of iron, one 
has only to learn what kingdom succeeded Grecia. History is 
very explicit on this point. Only one kingdom did this, and 
that was Rome. It conquered Grecia, and with its iron hand, 
broke all opposing powers in pieces and bruised them. Gibbon, 
in describing the Roman empire, employs the very imagery 
used in the prophecy itself. He says: 

"The arms of the republic, sometimes vanquished in bat- 
tle, always victorious in war, advanced with rapid steps to the 
Euphrates, the Danube, the Rhine, and the ocean; and the 
images of gold, or silver, or brass, that might serve to repre- 
sent the nations and their kings, were successively broken by 
the iron monarchy of Rome." — "Decline and Fall of the 
Roman Empire," chap. 38, par. 43. 



98 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

At the beginning of the Christian era, the Roman empire 
was master of the whole south of Europe, including the coun- 
tries now known as France, England, the greater part of the 
Netherlands, Switzerland, and the south of Germany, Turkey, 
and Greece, as well as having some possessions in Asia and 
Africa. Speaking of the universality of this empire, Gibbon 
says: 

"The empire of the Romans filled the world, and when that 
empire fell into the hands of a single person, the world became 
a safe and dreary, prison for his enemies. ... To resist 
was fatal, and it was impossible to fly." — "Decline and Fall 
of the Roman Empire, ' ' chap. 3, par. 37. 

ROME DIVIDED 

"And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of pot- 
ter's clay and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided, 
but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch 
as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay. And as the toes 
of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom 
shall be partly strong, and partly broken. ' ' Dan. 2 :41, 42. 

Now the image stands before us complete. See chart, lines 
W, X, Y, Z and 18. 

While Rome, with the power and strength of iron, had 
conquered and subdued all other kingdoms, yet this kingdom 
was itself to be broken to pieces, and divided into a number 
of lesser kingdoms, according to the prophecy which said, "the 
kingdom shall be divided." This division was indicated by 
the feet and toes of the image being composed, "part of iron, 
and part of clay." In the seventh chapter of Daniel this 
division is represented by the ten horns on the head of the 
fourth beast. The division was accomplished between the 
years A. D. 351 and 476, and is represented on the chart, on 
lines R and S, between lines 17 and 20. 

Gibbon, in his "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," 
chapter 37, enumerates the nations that were instrumental in 
breaking up the Roman empire, as follows: the Visigoths, 
Burgundians, Suevi, Vandals, Ostrogoths, Heruli, Pranks, Sax- 
ons, Lombards, and Alemanni. 

These are the ten kingdoms into which. Rome was divided. 

With the fall of Rome passed away the last of the four 
great universal empires mentioned in this prophecy. In this 
divided state Rome has existed for more than fourteen hun- 
dred years. Time and again men have tried to rear on these 
dominions one vast empire. Charlemagne tried it, Charles V 
tried it, Louis XVI tried it, Napoleon tried it ; but all without 



THE FOUR BEASTS OF DANIEL 7 



avail. One short verse of those Scriptures which cannot be 
broken was stronger than all their efforts. The prophet said, 
''They shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not 
mixed with miry clay." Prophecy said it should not be; his- 
tory says it has not been. 

In this divided state, Rome was to remain until the setting 
up of God's everlasting kingdom, represented in the prophecy 
by the stone that was ' ' cut out of the mountain without hands, ' ' 
and that ''brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the 
silver, and the gold," and "became a -great mountain, and 
filled the whole earth." 

Thus closes the prophecy of the great image. 



THE FOUR BEASTS OF DANIEL 7 

BABYLON 

"In the first year of Belshazzar, king of Babylon, Daniel 
had a dream and visions of his head upon his bed; then he 
wrote the dream, and told the sum of the matters. Daniel 
spake and said: I saw in my vision by night, and, behold, 
the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea. And 
four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from 
another." Dan. 7:1-3. 

By referring to the chart, at the intersection of lines T 
and U, from 8 to 15, will be seen representations of the four 
beasts here referred to. 

The language of Scripture should always be taken literally, 
unless there exists a good reason for taking it figuratively ; and 
that which is figurative should be interpreted by that which 
is literal. The fact that the prophet says that "these great 
beasts, which are four, are four kings which shall arise out 
of the earth," and that "the fourth beast shall be the fourth 
kingdom upon earth," and that "the saints of the Most High 
shall take the kingdom," proves that the four beasts were 
used as symbols to represent four great universal kingdoms 
that were to arise and pass away before the setting up of 
God's everlasting kingdom. 

Jer. 25 :32, 33, says: "Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold, 
evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirl- 
wind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth. And 
the slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the 
earth even unto the other end of the earth." This Scripture 
shows that in prophecy winds denote war and strife. Further 



100 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

evidence of this fact is found in the vision itself; for as the 
result of the striving of the winds, kingdoms arise and fall; 
this was accomplished through war and strife. 

The Bible, in Rev. 17:15, gives the definition of sea, or 
waters, when used as a symbol, as follows: "The waters 
which thou sawest, ... are peoples, and multitudes, and 
nations, and tongues." 

The prophecy under consideration can easily be under- 
stood by the Bible definitions of these symbols. 

"The first [beast] was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: 
I beheld till the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted 
up from the earth, and made stand upon the feet as a man, and 
a man's heart was given to it." Verse 4. See lion on chart, 
on lines T, U and 9. The prophecy says, "The fourth beast 
shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth." The first, second, 
and third beasts must, therefore, likewise represent the first, 
second, and third kingdoms on earth. 

This being true, the lion, or first beast, must represent the 
first universal kingdom, Babylon, which was represented by 
the head of gold of the great image of Daniel 2. 

The reason, doubtless, for again covering the history of this 
world by representing it by these four great beasts, is that 
additional features and characteristics may be brought out. 
For instance, the wings on the lion, the king of beasts, denote 
the rapidity with which Babylon made its conquests under 
Nebuchadnezzar. See Hab. 1 :6-8. But a change took place in 
the symbol ; its wings were plucked ; it no longer flew like 
an eagle upon its prey ; the ferocious spirit of a lion was gone ; 
and a man's heart was given to it. This last doubtless refers 
to the change that took place in Nebuchadnezzar during the 
latter part of his life, after suffering for seven years with the 
disease known as lycanthropy. See Dan. 4. The kingdom 
itself, in its latter period, became greatly weakened through 
luxury and wealth. 

MEDO-PERSIA 

"And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and 
it raised up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the 
mouth of it, between the teeth of it; and they said unto it, 
Arise, devour much flesh." Verse 5. See bear on lines T, U 
and 11 of the chart. 

As in the image of chapter 2, so in the beast symbols of 
chapter 7, a marked deterioration is noticed as we pass down 
from one kingdom to another. As the silver of the breast and 



THE FOUR BEASTS OF DANIEL 7 101 

arms was inferior to the golden head of the image, so is the 
bear inferior to the lion. Medo-Persia fell short of Babylon 
in wealth and magnificence. 

The kingdom represented by the bear which raised itself 
up on one side, was composed of two nationalities, the Medes 
and the Persians. These same facts are represented by the 
two horns of the ram of chapter 8. Of these horns it is said 
that the higher came up last. This was fulfilled by the Persian 
division of the kingdom coming up last and attaining the 
higher eminence by becoming the controlling power in the 
nation. The three ribs in the bear's mouth probably denote 
the three provinces especially subjugated by this kingdom, 
Babylon, Lydia, and Egypt. The words, "Arise, devour much 
flesh" probably had reference to the fact that the conquest 
of these powers stimulated the Medes and Persians to continue 
their efforts to extend their conquests into new fields. It 
will be seen on the chart, on lines Q, R, S and 10 that this 
kingdom dates from the overthrow of Babylon by Cyrus, 538 
B. C, and continued to the battle of Arbela, 331 B. C. See 
lines Q, R and S, between 11 and 12. Also lines S and 11, 
show that it continued for two hundred and seven years. The 
symbol of the bear just described will be seen on lines T, U 
and 11. 

GRECIA 

"After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which 
had upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had 
also four heads ; and dominion was given to it. ' ' Verse 6. This 
beast will be seen on lines T, U and 12 of the chart. 

This symbol represented the third kingdom, Grecia. The 
leopard, though a swift footed beast, was not sufficient in 
itself, to properly represent the career of this nation. Two 
wings were given the lion to show the rapidity with which 
the Babylonian kingdom made its conquests ; but the unparal- 
leled swiftness of the movements of the Grecian kingdom had 
to be symbolized by four wings. The rapid conquest with 
which Alexander conquered the world, has no parallel in 
history. 

The following description of Alexander's marches is here 
given by Rollin: 

"From Macedonia to the Ganges, which river Alexander 
nearly approached, is computed at least eleven hundred 
leagues. Add to this the various turnings in Alexander's 
marches; first, from the extremity of Cilicia, where the battle 
of Issis was fought, to the temple of Jupiter Ammon in Libya ; 



102 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

and his returning from thence to Tyre, a journey of three hun- 
dred leagues at least, and as much space at least for the wind- 
ings of his route in different places; we shall find that Alex- 
ander, in less than eight years, marched his army upward of 
seventeen hundred leagues [or more than fifty-one hundred 
miles], without including his return to Babylon." — Rollin's 
Ancient History, book 15, sec. 2. 

Within twenty-two years after the death of Alexander, 
the empire was divided among his four leading generals. 
Cassander had Macedonia and Greece in the west ; Lysimachus 
had Thrace and the parts of Asia on the Hellespont and Bos- 
porus in the north; Ptolemy received Egypt, Lydia, Arabia, 
Palestine and Coele-Syria in the south ; and Seleucus had 
Syria and all the rest of Alexander's dominions in the east. 
These divisions were symbolized by the four heads of the 
leopard. 

The date of the rise of Grecia, 331 B. C, the length of time 
it stood, one hundred and seventy years, and the date of its 
fall, 161 B. C, will be seen on the historic diagram, on lines 
Q, R and S, half way between 11 and 12, and a little to the 
right of line 13. 

ROME 

"After this I saw in the night vision, and behold a fourth 
beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it 
had great iron teeth; it devoured and brake in pieces, and 
stamped the residue with the feet of it ; and it was diverse from 
all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns." 
Verse 7. 

See this beast represented on the chart on lines T, U and 14. 

There was no beast in nature that would fitly represent 
the fourth, or last universal kingdom of man, so the Lord 
had to bring to the view of the prophet a nondescript beast, 
having heads, horns, hoofs, wings, scales, great iron teeth, 
and nails of brass. But yet with all these additional — though 
unnatural features — it did not fully represent the Roman 
kingdom, which devoured, brake in pieces, and ground into 
the very dust beneath its brazen feet all other kingdoms. 

In the angel's interpretation to Daniel of his vision he 
makes plain what kingdom is represented by this fourth beast. 
He says, "The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon 
earth." Verse 23. This beast, then, corresponds to the legs 
of iron of the great image of chapter 2. 



THE FOUR BEASTS OF DANIEL 7 103 

ROME DIVIDED 

The prophecy, speaking of the fourth beast, says, "And it 
had ten horns." Above this fourth beast, as represented on 
the chart, on lines Q, R and S, and a little to the right of line 
13, will be seen the beginning of this fourth kingdom, Rome, 
as a universal empire, 161 B. C. It continued as a universal 
kingdom until about A. D. 351, which will be seen on lines 
R, S and 17. At that time began the breaking up of the em- 
pire, which resulted in its final division into ten kingdoms, 
as represented by the ten horns of the fourth beast. 

A brief history of these ten kingdoms, is given in a work 
entitled, "The Great Nations of Today," pages 56-59, as 
follows : 

"There were no fewer than eighteen distinct tribes of the 
barbarians who, by their active presence, were instrumental 
in the ruin of Western Rome. Of these, some, after their 
work of destruction was done, left the territories of the West, 
and established themselves elsewhere, or were lost among the 
other wild peoples of northern and eastern Europe or Asia. 
Others coalesced and the names of lesser tribes were lost under 
that of the predominating one. And so, when the last vestige 
of the Western Empire of Rome had vanished, the territory 
was found partitioned into exactly ten parts, occupied by ex- 
actly ten independent nations ; no more, no less. 

"Named in order from the northern to the southern limits 
of the Western Empire, these ten, as they stood in A. D. 476 
at the extinction of the Empire, were as follows: 

1. The Angles and Saxons in Britain. 

2. The Franks in all Gaul north and west of the river 
Moselle. 

3. The Alemanni in north Switzerland, Swabia, Alsace, 
and Lorraine. 

4. The Burgundians in west Switzerland and the valleys 
of the Rhone and Saone in southeast Gaul. 

5. The Visigoths in southwest Gaul and Spain. 

6. The Suevi in that part of Spain which is now Portugal. 

7. The Ostrogoths in Pannonia — what is now Austria. 

8. The Lombards in Noricum, between the Ostrogoths 
and the Alemanni. 

9. The Heruli in Italy. 

10. The Vandals in North Africa, with capital at 
Carthage. 

"The details of this anyone can trace out, any day, on any 
map that he will but hold before him, and mark as he reads 
the history of the fall of the Roman Empire. 

"These ten kingdoms were first mentioned in the prophecy 
of Daniel, especially in that 'the fourth beast, which repre- 
sented Rome, was seen to have ten horns ; ' and these ten horns, 
'out of this (fourth) kingdom/ are distinctly said by the angel 



104 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

to be 'ten kings (kingdoms) that shall arise.' Dan. 7:7, 24. 
They are referred to later, in the book of Revelation, in the 
description of the dragon, and also of the Beast having 'seven 
heads and ten horns.' 

"Also, in the prophecy of Daniel, it is related that there 
would come up among these ten another one; and that by it 
three of the ten would be 'plucked up by the roots.' Dan. 7 :8, 
20, 24. The three which were plucked up, were the Heruli, who 
occupied Italy, in 493 • the Vandals, who occupied North Africa, 
in 534; and the Ostrogoths, who had been instrumental in 
rooting up the Heruli, and who occupied Italy in their place, 
in 538. That 'other one,' before whom these three were 
rooted up, is described as having ' eyes like the eyes of man, and 
a mouth speaking great things : ' and it was, and is, the papacy. 

"Three taken from ten leaves seven. And these seven of 
the original ten kingdoms that divided Western Rome are in 
that territory today, and are the Powers of Western Europe 
today. The Saxons, the Franks, the Alemanni, the Burgun- 
dians, the Visigoths, the Suevi, and the Lombards are the 
powers, respectively, of Britain, France, Germany (in the 
French language, and with the French people of today, the 
Germans are only Allemands, and Germany is only Allemagne), 
Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, and Italy of today. For after 
the plucking up of the third of the three kingdoms, the Lom- 
bards removed from their place on the Danube, and established 
their kingdom in Italy; and to a considerable portion of that 
country 'communicated the perpetual appellation of Lom- 
bardy.' In the middle ages, Lombardy was, indeed, for a time, 
the name for Italy itself. Thus the Powers of Western Europe 
today are as definitely pointed out by the prophecy as they 
could be without specifically naming them. 

"Of these seven, some are very powerful, such as Britain, 
France, and Germany; while others are weak, such as Switzer- 
land, Spain, and Portugal; while Italy stands, as it were, be- 
tween strong and weak. So these seven, of the original ten 
stand just where Daniel, from the dream that was given to 
Nebuchadnezzar, said they would stand. Dan. 2:40-43. They 
stand there in precisely the condition in which that prophecy 
said they would stand — 'partly strong, and partly broken,' or 
weak. Britain, France, and Germany have spread their power 
over the whole world; and have so intertwined themselves in 
the affairs of the whole world that what touches the world 
touches them, and what touches them touches the world. 

"Thus the first effect of the first four of the Seven Trumpets 
was the blotting out of the Western Empire of Rome ; and the 
second effect was the planting of the modern nations of West- 
ern Europe, and among them the great nations of today." 

The diagram representing these ten kingdoms will be 
found on lines R and S, between 17 and 20. 



THE FOUR BEASTS OF DANIEL 7 105 

THREE KINGDOMS PLUCKED UP 

Speaking of a change which took place among the horns 
of this fourth beast, Daniel said : "I considered the horns, and, 
behold, there came up among them another little horn, before 
whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the 
roots; and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of 
man, and a mouth speaking great things." Verse 8. 

In the beginning of the fourth century a controversy arose 
between Alexander and Arius, over the doctrine of the Trinity, 
Alexander claiming that Christ, the Son of God, was begotten 
by the Father, and of the same substance with the Father, 
while Arius taught that Christ, although begotten by the Fa- 
ther, was not of the same substance with the Father. See 
Theodoret's "Ecclesiastical History," book 1, chap. 4. 

This controversy continued to grow, so that it was the 
prominent subject to be considered at the council of Nice, 
A. D. 325. Alexander was victorious, and his idea was made 
the basis of the noted Nicean creed established at that time. 
Arius did not give up, but still continued to hold to his ideas, 
and to teach them far and wide, until he had quite a following. 
This doctrine came to be known as Arianism. It continued to 
grow rapidly during the years that intervened between A. D. 
325 and 533, so that by the beginning of the fifth century it 
had become quite a power in the land ; and more especially so, 
in three kingdoms of the divided Roman Empire; the Heruli, 
the Vandals, and the Ostrogoths. 

The Catholics were not only feeling the restraining power 
of an Arian king in Italy, but they were suffering a violent 
persecution from the Arian Vandals in Africa. See Gibbon's 
"Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," chap. 37, sec. 2. 
Elliott, in his "Horae Apocalytica, " Vol. 3, page 152, note 3, 
says: "The Vandal kings were not only Arians, but perse- 
cutors of the Catholics; in Sardinia and Corsica, under the 
Roman Episcopate, we may presume, as well as in Africa." 
Thus affairs stood when, in 533, Justinian started upon his 
Vandal and Gothic wars. Desiring to secure aid o,f the pope 
and the Catholic party, he issued his memorial decree which 
was to constitute the pope the head of all the churches. This 
decree was fully carried out in A. D. 538, from which time the 
papal supremacy is dated. 

D'Aubigne in his "History of the Reformation," book 1, 
chap. 1, gives an idea of the conditions existing between the 
church and the state at this time. He says : 



106 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

"Princes whom these stormy times often shook upon their 
thrones, offered their protection if Rome would in its turn 
support them. They conceded to her the spiritual authority, 
provided she would make a return in secular power. They 
were lavish of the souls of men, in the hope that she would aid 
them against their enemies. The power of the hierarchy, which 
was ascending, and the imperial power, which was declining, 
leaned thus one upon the other, and by this alliance accelerated 
their twofold destiny. Rome could not lose by it. An edict 
of Theodosius II and of Valentinian III proclaimed the Roman 
bishop ' rector of the whole church.' Justinian published a 
similar decree." 

This decree of Justinian's could not be carried into effect 
until the three Arian horns, or kingdoms, which stood in its 
way, were plucked up. The Heruli were conquered in A. D. 
493, the Vandals in 534, and the Ostrogoths, the last one of 
the Arian powers to oppose the decree of Justinian, in 538. 

THE LITTLE HORN 

"I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among 
them another little horn. . . . And he shall speak great 
words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints 
of the Most High, and think to change times and laws: and 
they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and 
the dividing of time." Verses 8, 25. 

Some of the titles that have been given to the pope are as 
follows: "Our Lord God, the Pope," "God upon Earth," 
' ' King of kings and Lord of lords. ' ' Here are some adulations 
received by the popes, without their rebuking them. One 
bishop called him ' ' the lion of the tribe of Judah, the promised 
Saviour." Lord Anthony Pucci, the fifth Lateran, said to the 
pope, "The sight of thy divine majesty does not a little terrify 
me; for I am not ignorant that a power both in heaven and 
in earth is given unto you; that the prophetic saying is ful- 
filled in you, 'All the kings of the earth shall worship him, 
and nations shall serve him.' " See Oswald's "Kingdom 
Which Shall Not Be Destroyed," pages 97-99. Dr. Adam 
Clarke, commenting on verse 25, says, "He shall speak as if he 
were God." St. Jerome, quoting from Symmachus, says, "To 
none can this apply so well or so fully as to the popes of 
Rome. They have assumed infallibility, which belongs only 
to God. They profess to forgive sins, which belongs only to 
God. . . . And they go against God when they give in- 
dulgences for Him. This is the worst of all blasphemies." 

The prophecy says of this little horn power, that he "shall 



THE FOUR BEASTS OF DANIEL 7 107 

wear out the saints of the Most High." Scott's "Church 
History," commenting on this says: 

"A million of poor Waldenses perished in France; nine 
hundred thousand orthodox Christians were slain in less than 
thirty years after the institution of the order of the Jesuits. 
The Duke of Alva boasted of having put to death in the Neth- 
erlands thirty-six thousand by the hand of the common ex- 
ecutioner during the space of a few years. The Inquisition 
destroyed, by various tortures, one hundred and fifty thousand 
within thirty years. This is only a part of what history 
records. The total number will never be known until the 
resurrection day." 

The prophecy further says of this little horn that "he shall 
think to change times and laws. ' ' This evidently can not refer 
to the times and laws of earthly governments, but rather to the 
times and laws of God, as it is nothing strange for one earthly 
power to change the times and laws of another earthly power 
which it has conquered. 

There is no other power on earth to which this Scripture 
can be applied but the papacy, as this is the only power that 
has attempted to change the law of God. Nor does the papacy 
deny the charge, but rather boasts of its power to change the 
times and laws of God. This is shown in the following from 
Catholic Catechisms: 

"Ques. — Have you any other way of proving that the 
church has power to institute festivals of precept? 

"Ans. — Had she not such power, she could not have done 
that in which all modern religionists agree with her, — she 
could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first 
day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh 
day, a change for which there is no scriptural authority." — 
"Doctrinal Catechism," page 101. 

"Ques. — How prove you that the church hath power to 
command feasts and holy days? 

"Ans. — By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sun- 
day, which Protestants allow of; and therefore they fondly 
contradict themselves by keeping Sunday strictly, and break- 
ing most other feasts commanded by the same church." — 
"Abridgment of Christian Doctrine," page 58. 

In reply to a letter of inquiry written by John R. Ashley 
to Cardinal Gibbons, the chancellor of the Cardinal, under 
date of Feb. 28, 1892, said : 

"Who changed the Sabbath? 

"Answer— The Holy Catholic Church." 

The Catholics, in their catechisms, have expunged the sec- 
ond commandment of the decalogue, thus doing away with 



108 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

the prohibition of image worship, and divided the tenth in 
order to preserve the number ten. 

As already shown, they have also changed the fourth com- 
mandment by substituting Sunday, the first day of the week, 
in the place of the seventh day. 

"The} 7 . shall be given into his hands until a time and timec 
and the dividing of time." Verse 25. Dan. 4:25, speaking of 
the time that Nebuchadnezzar was to be driven from his home, 
says, "seven times shall pass over thee." This, Josephus in- 
forms us, was seven years. A "time" therefore denotes one 
year, "times," two years, and the dividing of time, or half a 
time, would mean half a year. Thus we have a total of three 
and one-half prophetic years. The ordinary Jewish year con- 
sisted of three hundred and sixty days. Three and one-half 
times three hundred and sixty days would be twelve hundred 
and sixty days. Eze. 4:6 says, "I have appointed thee each 
day for a year;" and Num. 14:34 says, "After the number of 
the days in which ye searched the land even forty days, each 
day for a year." Thus, according to this reckoning, we have 
twelve hundred and sixty years for the continuation of the 
supremacy of the little horn. 

As we have already seen, the supremacy of this little horn 
power began with the overthrow of the Ostrogoths, the last 
opposing power of the papacy, in A. D. 538. By adding 
twelve hundred and sixty years to this date we are brought 
to 1798 ; and it was on February 10th of this year that General 
Berthier, with a French army, entered Rome, proclaimed a 
republic, took the pope prisoner, and thus for a time appar- 
ently abolished the papacy itself. The pope was carried to 
Valence, France, where, eighteen months later, he died in exile. 
This marks the close of that long prophetic period, and the 
end of the papal supremacy. Two years later another pope 
was elected, but with no such unlimited powers as were 
enjoyed by former popes. Rev. 13 :3 indicates that the dead- 
ly wound here received was to be healed. 

This prophetic period, with its dates, will be seen on the 
chart, on lines Q and 21, where the date 538 is shown. On 
line R, extending from line 21 to line 24/ is represented the 
1260 years of persecution; and extending up on line 24 to 
line Q will be seen the date, 1798. 

The prophecy continues: 

"And they shall take away his dominion to consume and 
to destroy it unto the end. . . . And the kingdom and 



RAM, HE-GOAT AND LITTLE HORN 109 

dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole 
heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most 
High." Dan. 7:26, 27. 

As in the great image, the history of the world is here traced 
down to the time when the redeemed are to have this earth 
in its renewed state for their everlasting home. 



THE RAM, HE-GOAT, AND LITTLE 
HORN OF DANIEL 8 

"In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a 
vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that 
which appeared unto me at the first. . . . Then I lifted 
up mine eyes, and saw, and behold, there stood before the 
river a ram which had two horns; and the two horns were 
high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher 
came up last. I saw the ram pushing westward, and north- 
ward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before 
him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his hand ; 
but he did according to his will, and became great." Dan- 
iel 8:1, 3, 4. 

By turning to the chart, at the intersection of lines V, 
W and 11, will be seen a representation of the ram here 
described. 

MEDO-PERSIA 

The inspired writer gives the interpretation of this symbol 
in plain language: "The ram which thou sawest, having 
two horns, are the kings of Media and Persia. ' ' The two 
nations that composed this kingdom are represented by the 
two horns. Cyrus, of the Persian line, was called to assist his 
uncle, Darius the Mede, in the capture of Babylon. Darius 
remained king of the Medo-Persian kingdom for two years, 
or until his death, when Cyrus the Persian took the throne. 
Thus was fulfilled the Scripture. "The two horns," or two 
powers, "were high," that is, powerful; but one was "higher," 
or more powerful than the other, "and the higher" — Persia — 
"came up last." His pushing westward, northward, and 
southward, has reference to the different directions in which 
Medo-Persia carried its conquests. 

This power was so successful in its onward march to vic- 
tory, that in the days of Ahasuerus the Medo-Persian king- 
dom extended from India to Ethiopia, the extremities of the 
then known world, or over a hundred and twenty-seven prov- 



110 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

inces. See Esther 1 :1. The Medo-Persian kingdom is repre- 
sented on the diagram, as in the pr6phecy of Daniel itself, 
by three different symbols; the breast and arms of silver, the 
bear, and the ram. See lines Z, Y, and 11 ; T, U, and 11 ; and 
V, W, and 11. Above, on lines R and S, between 10 and 
11%, the date of its rise, 538 B. C, its name, Medo-Persia, 
the length of time it stood, 207 years, and the date of its fall, 
331 B. C, are shown. 

GRECIA 

"And as I was considering," said Daniel, "behold, an he- 
goat came from the west on the face of the whole earth, and 
touched not the ground; and the goat had a notable horn 
between his eyes." 

See lines V and 12 for a representation of this he-goat. 

This symbol is explained in verse 21: "And the rough 
goat is the king [or kingdom] of Grecia." 

He "touched not the ground," says the prophecy. This 
power, as it went from place to place, apparently flying with 
the swiftness of the wind, seemed to the prophet as though it 
touched not the ground. 

The notable horn between his eyes is explained in verse 
21 as "the first king" of this Macedonian, or Grecian em- 
pire. This king was Alexander the Great. 

"And he [the he-goat, or Grecia] came to the ram that 
had two horns [Medo-Persia], . . . and ran into him in 
the fury of his power. ' ' 

Bishop Newton comments on this text as follows: 

"One can hardly read these words, without having some 
image of Darius 's army standing and guarding the River 
Granicus, and of Alexander on the other side, with his forces 
plunging in, swimming across the stream, and rushing on the 
enemy with all the fire and fury that can be imagined." — 
"Dissertation on the Prophecies," page 239. 

The two horns were broken, and the ram was cast to the 
ground and stamped upon. This was completely fulfilled when 
Alexander's army subdued his enemies, cut them in pieces, 
and scattered them, ravaged the country, and plundered the 
cities. Thus the ram had no power to stand before the goat, 
and there was none that could deliver him out of his hands. 

Here we have the third symbol in the prophecy of Daniel to 
represent Grecia, the third universal kingdom. The three 
symbols are pictured on the chart thus : first, the belly and sides 
of brass of the image, on lines Y, Z, and 12 ; second, the four- 
headed and four- winged leopard beast, on lines T, U, and 12; 



RAM, HE-GOAT AND LITTLE HORN 11J 

and, third, the he-goat with a notable horn between his eyes, 
on lines V, W, and 12 ; while above, on lines R and S, between 
11% and 13V4, are given the rise of this power, 331 B. C, the 
length of time it stood, 170 years, and the time of its over- 
throw, 161 B. C. 

GRECIA DIVIDED 

" Therefore the he-goat waxed very great: and when he 
was strong, the great horn was broken; and for it came up 
four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven. ' ' Verse 8. 

The head of the goat is enlarged on the diagram and 
moved to the right, on lines V, W, X, and 14, so that the 
change from one horn to four horns might be properly repre- 
sented. The great horn was broken by the death of Alex- 
ander, in the thirty-second year of his age, 323 B. C, when 
the Grecian empire was at its height. 

And for this horn were to come up four notable horns, or 
powers, toward the four winds • of heaven. After about 
twenty-two years . of warring among the governors of the 
different provinces, the country was divided among Alex- 
ander's four leading generals; Cassander taking Greece and 
the neighboring country, in the west; Lysimachus, Asia Minor, 
in the north; Seleueus, Syria and Babylon, in the east; and 
Ptolemy, Egypt, in the south. 

Myers, in his "History of Greece," pages 456, 457, refers to 
this partitioning of Alexander's Empire as follows: 

"There was no one who could wield the sword that fell 
from the hand of Alexander. It is said that, when dying, being 
asked to whom the kingdom should belong, he replied, 'To the 
strongest,' and handed his signet ring to his general, Perdic- 
cas. But Perdiccas was not strong enough to master the dif- 
ficulties of the situation. Indeed, who is strong enough to rule 
the world ? 

"Consequently the vast empire created by Alexander's un- 
paralleled conquests was distracted by the wranglings and 
wars of his successors, and before the close of the fourth cen- 
tury B. C. had become broken into fragments. Besides minor 
states, four well-defined and important monarchies rose out 
of the ruins. After the rearrangement of boundaries that fol- 
lowed the decisive battle of Ipsus (fought in Phrygia, 301 
B. C), these principal states had the outlines shown by the 
accompanying map. Their rulers were Lysimachus, Cassander, 
Seleueus Nicator, and Ptolemy, who had each assumed the 
title of king. The great horn was broken, and instead of it 
came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heaven. 
Dan. 8:8." 



112 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THE LITTLE HORN 

"And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which 
waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the 
east, and toward the pleasant land. And it waxed great, 
even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the 
host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them. ' ' 
Verses 9, 10. 

As Rome succeeded Grecia in the history of these universal 
kingdoms, so the little horn that waxed exceeding great, must 
represent the Roman power for it was .seen coming out of one 
of the horns of the goat, or out of one of the divisions of the 
Grecian kingdom. 

From a civil standpoint, Rome came on the stage of action 
in 168 B. C, when it conquered Macedonia, as seen on the 
chart just above line Q, and at the right of line 12; but with 
Rome, as with all earthly governments, it did not enter the 
field of prophecy until it became connected with the people 
of God. This came about by the formation of the famous 
Jewish League, of 161 B. C. See 1 Maccabees 8; Josephus's 
"Jewish Antiquities," book 12, chapter 10, sec. 6; "Prideaux's 
Connections," vol. 2, page 166. 

Rome, coming out of the Macedonian division of the 
Grecian empire, is said to have come out of one of the four 
horns representing the Grecian empire after it was divided. 
The little horn waxed great toward the south. This was true 
of Rome. Egypt was made a province of the Roman empire 
30 B. C, and continued such for some centuries. The little horn 
waxed great toward the east. This also was true of Rome. 
Rome conquered Syria 65 B. C, and made it a province. The 
little horn waxed great toward the pleasant land. So did 
Rome. Judea is called the pleasant land in many Scriptures. 
The Romans made it a province of their empire, 63 B. C, 
and eventually destroyed the city and the temple, and scat- 
tered the Jews over the face of the whole earth. The little 
horn waxed great, even to the host of heaven. Rome did this 
also. The host of heaven, when used in a symbolic sense in 
reference to events transpiring upon the earth, must denote 
persons of illustrious character, or exalted position. The 
great red dragon of Rev. 12:4 is said to have cast down a 
third part of the stars of heaven to the ground. This dragon 
is interpreted to symbolize pagan Rome, and the stars that 
it cast to the ground, as Jewish rulers. Evidently it is the 
same power and the same work that is here brought to view, 



SANCTUARY AND ITS CLEANSING 113 

which again makes it necessary to apply this growing horn 
to Rome. 

This is illustrated on the chart by the little horn of verse 
9 being enlarged so that it extends on line V from 13 to 27. 
It represents Rome in its entirety, from the time it conquered 
Macedonia to its final destruction at the second coming of 
Christ, and is interpreted by the angel Gabriel, as follows: 
"And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the trans- 
gressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, 
and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his 
power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he 
shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, 
and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. And 
through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his 
hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by 
peace [margin, prosperity] shall destroy many: he shall also 
stand up against the Prince of princes ; but he shall be broken 
without hand." Dan. 8:23-25. 



THE SANCTUARY AND ITS 
CLEANSING 

On lines K and L of the diagram, extending from 
3^2 to 9, is a view of the earthly sanctuary, in which we have 
one of the best object lessons ever given to man, showing that 
the law and the gospel are inseparable. The ark, with the 
cherubim that belongs to the second apartment of the sanctu- 
ary, will be seen somewhat enlarged between lines F and I, 
extending from 3% to 5%. The law of God was placed in the 
ark, while on the top, just above it, was the mercyseat, which 
showed that God's mercy was there, and that He is ever ready 
to forgive any violation of the law beneath. 

The earthly sanctuary, with all the sacrifices and service 
connected with it, was but a type of Christ's sacrificial death 
on earth, and of His ministry as High Priest in the heavenly 
sanctuary for the salvation of man. Through the service of 
the sanctuary was revealed the gospel plan which was to re- 
store the willing and obedient fallen sons of men to the original 
condition from which Adam fell. 

Paul, in Heb. 9:1, says, "Then verily the first covenant had 
also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary." 
This sanctuary is described in verses 2-5: "For there was a 
tabernacle made; the first [or first apartment], wherein was 



114 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is 
called the sanctuary [margin, the holy] . And after the second 
veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all ; which had 
the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round 
about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, 
and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; 
and over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; 
of which we can not now speak particularly. ' ' 

The sanctuary, or tabernacle, of which Paul is here speak- 
ing, is without doubt the one erected by Moses according to 
the pattern shown him in the mount, with its holy and most 
holy places, and various vessels of service, which are fully 
described in the twenty-fifth chapter of Exodus, and onward. 
This tabernacle was afterwards merged into the temple at 
Jerusalem. 

There was an earthly sanctuary, and there was, and still 
is, a heavenly sanctuary, as the first sanctuary was a pattern 
of the heavenly. In giving Moses instruction how to make 
the sanctuary the Lord said: "According to all that I show 
thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of 
all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. . . . 
And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was 
showed thee in the mount. ' ' Ex. 25 :9, 40. Further statements 
regarding this subject are found in Ex. 26:30; 27:8; Acts 7:44. 

From Heb. 8 :5 we learn not only that the earthly sanctuary 
was a pattern of the heavenly sanctuary, but that its priests, 
sacrifices, and ministrations were but types, shadows, and ex- 
amples of Christ, our High Priest, and of His work in the 
heavenly sanctuary above. Speaking of the earthly priests, 
Paul here says : ' ' Who serve unto the example and shadow of 
heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he 
was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith He, that 
thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee 
in the mount." And again, in Heb. 8:1, 2, we have a clear 
statement of the above facts, as follows: "Now of the things 
which we have spoken this is the sum : We have such an High 
Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the 
Majesty in the heavens; a minister of the sanctuary, and of 
the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man." 

Paul, in Heb. 9 :1, says, "Then verily the first covenant had 
also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary." 
The word "also" here proves conclusively that the second, 
or new, covenant also has divine services and a heavenly 
sanctuary. 



SANCTUARY AND ITS CLEANSING 115 

Christ's work in connection with the heavenly sanctuary 
was not fully understood until after His death, when the 
earthly sanctuary with all its services, came to an end; these 
being only types and shadows of the true. This is indicated in 
Heb. 9:8, 9, which reads: "The Holy Ghost this signifying, 
that the way into the holiest of all [Greek, holy places, plural] 
was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was 
yet standing : which was a figure of the time then present. ' ' 

Heb. 9:11, 12 shows what took place after the death and 
resurrection of Christ : ' ' But Christ being come an High Priest 
of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect taber- 
nacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building ; 
neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own 
blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained 
eternal redemption for us." And in verses 23, 24, Paul tells 
why Christ has entered into the heavenly sanctuary. He 
says: "It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things 
in the heavens [or earthly sanctuary] should be purified with 
these [earthly sacrifices] ; but the heavenly things themselves 
with better sacrifices than these [even the sacrifice of Christ]. 
For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, 
which are the figures of the true ; but into heaven itself, now 
to appear in the presence of God for us." 

In the Revelation, John gives additional evidence that 
there is a sanctuary in heaven. In chapter 11 :19, he says he 
saw in the temple of God in heaven "the ark of his testi- 
mony." Elsewhere he speaks of the "altar," "incense," and 
the "seven lamps of fire." Every Bible student will recognize 
the parallels between these and the articles of furniture in the 
earthly sanctuary. 

Directions concerning the manner in which the earthly 
sanctuary was to be cleansed, are given in Leviticus. The 
repentant sinner brought his victim to the door of the taber- 
nacle; then, placing his hands upon the head of this victim, 
he confessed his sin. By this act he signified that he had 
sinned, and was worthy of death; but in his stead he conse- 
crated his victim, and thus transferred his guilt to it. With 
his own hand he then took the life of his victim, on account 
of that guilt. The law demanded the life of the transgressor 
for his disobedience. 

Lev. 17 :11, 14 tells us that the life is in the blood ; hence, 
without the shedding of blood, or the taking of life, there is 
no remission of sin ; with the shedding of blood the demand of 
the law is satisfied, and remission of sins made possible. The 

i 



116 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

blood of the victim representing the forfeited life, was also 
the means through which the sins Of the transgressor were 
carried by the priest, and ministered before the Lord. By this 
process the individual's sin was first transferred from himself 
to his victim by confession, then the same sins were transferred 
from the victim through his blood to the sanctuary, by the 
priest taking it and sprinkling it before the veil, behind which 
was the ark containing the law that the sinner had trans- 
gressed. By this ceremony the sin was, through the blood, 
transferred in figure to the sanctuary. This was a daily work 
that was carried on throughout the year; and by this means 
the sins of the children of Israel were transferred to the 
sanctuary. 

On the tenth day of the seventh month, or the day of 
atonement, as it was called, a special service was held to 
remove the sins that had accumulated there during the whole 
year. On this day, two goats were brought to the door of 
the tabernacle by the priests, and lots were cast upon them, 
"one lot for the Lord, and the other lot for the scapegoat." 
The one upon which the Lord's lot fell was to be slain as a sin- 
offering for the people ; and the priest was to bring its blood 
within the veil, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat. "And 
he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the 
uncleanness of the children of Israel." Lev. 16:16. This was 
the only day in the year that the priest was permitted to enter 
into the second apartment, or most holy place of the sanctuary. 
On coming out he was then to lay both his hands upon the head 
of the scapegoat, confess over him all the sins of the people, 
and all their transgressions, and, putting them upon the head 
of the scapegoat (Lev. 16:21), he was to send him away by the 
hand of a fit man into a land not inhabited, a land of forget- 
fulness, or separation. Never again was this goat to appear 
in the camp of Israel. 

This service was not only for the cleansing of the people, 
but for the cleansing of the sanctuary as well. Lev. 16 :30, 33. 
This work was wholly typical in its nature, the sins being re- 
moved only in figure. At the same time, should any true 
Israelite go through this ceremony with faith in Christ, his 
sins would be removed in fact by the blood of Christ only. 
On account of the short lives of the priests, the Lord ordained 
that this day of atonement, in which the sanctuary was to be 
cleansed, should occur once each year. But not so with our 
great High Priest, Who officiates in the heavenly sanctuary. 



. 



A GREAT PROPHETIC PERIOD 117 

"He ever liveth to make intercession for us." See Heb. 
7 :23-25. 



A GREAT PROPHETIC PERIOD, 

OR THE TWENTY-THREE 

HUNDRED DAYS OF 

DAN, 8:14 

"And He said unto me, Unto two thousand and three 
hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.' ' Dan. 
8 :14. 

By referring to line F, on the chart, extending from 11 
to 25, a diagram will be seen in which are the words, "2300 
symbolic days (2300 years) to Autumn A. D. 1844." 

Having studied the sanctuary and its cleansing, the next 
thing to consider is the meaning, beginning, and ending of the 
twenty-three hundred days, at the close of which period the 
sanctuary was to "be cleansed. In order to ascertain the 
beginning of this long period, several Scriptures should be 
considered. 

In Dan. 8 :3-14, the following important symbols were shown 
to Daniel in vision- first, the ram; second, the he-goat; third, 
the four horns taking the place of the notable horn; fourth, 
the little horn ; and, fifth, the twenty-three hundred days. 

Daniel, who sought for the meaning of these various 
symbols, says in verses 15 and 16, "And I heard a man's voice 
between the banks of Ulai, which called, and said, Gabriel, 
make this man to understand the vision." Then in verses 
19 to 25, each part of the above vision is fully explained by 
the angel Gabriel, except the twenty-three hundred days; but 
in verse 26 he says, however, that "the vision of the evening 
and the morning . . . [or twenty-three hundred days] is 
true." It is evident that the vision of the evening and the 
morning here mentioned has reference to the twenty-three 
hundred days, as the revised version of Dan. 8:14 uses these 
words, "Unto two thousand and three-hundred evenings and 
mornings; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed." Why no 
further explanation of the vision was given at this time, is 
suggested in the following verse: "And I, Daniel, fainted, and 
was sick certain days: afterward I rose up, and did the king's 
business: and I was astonished at the vision, but none under- 
stood it." Dan. 8:27. 



118 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

The cleansing of the sanctuary at the end of a definite 
period, was of more interest to Daniel than all the rest of the 
vision, as the rebuilding of the sanctuary at Jerusalem at the 
end of seventy-years, was the very thing in which he was 
intensely interested. So, failing to have the subject of the 
sanctuary, and the twenty- three hundred days explained, he 
said, "I was astonished at the vision, but none understood it." 
Consequently the explanation of this part of the vision was 
left by the angel Gabriel for some future time. 

A little less than one year from the time this vision of 
Daniel 8 closes so abruptly, the Lord sent the angel Gabriel 
to give Daniel the vision of chapter 9, which was but a con- 
tinuation of the vision of chapter 8 ; for in Dan. 9 :21, 22, we 
find these words, "Yea, whiles I was speaking in prayer, even 
the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the begin- 
ning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about the time 
of the evening oblation.' ' 

Prom the fact that Daniel fainted just as the angel Gabriel 
had finished the interpretation of all of the vision of chapter 
eight except that portion relating to the twenty- three hundred 
days, and that Daniel, after recovering from his sickness, had 
said that he did not understand the vision, it is evident that 
when Gabriel, in chapter nine, made the statement to Daniel, 
that he had come to give him skill and understanding, he 
(Gabriel) must have had reference to the unfinished part of 
the interpretation of chapter eight, — the twenty-three hundred 
days. 

Again, in the vision of chapter nine, Daniel recognizes the 
angel Gabriel as the same being whom he had seen in a previous 
vision. And by going back to the visions of chapters two and 
seven, we find no mention of the angel Gabriel; nor was there 
any part of those visions left unexplained. But by turning 
to Dan. 8:16, we find this statement: "Gabriel, make this man 
to understand the vision." As the only unexplained part of 
the vision of chapter eight, was that concerning the twenty- 
three hundred days, this must have been the part that the 
angel Gabriel had a special command to make Daniel under- 
stand. For there is no record of the angel Gabriel ever having 
explained to Daniel the latter part of the vision of chapter 
eight, or that relating to the twenty-three hundred days, until 
we reach chapter nine. In this chapter Gabriel states that he 
had now come to give Daniel skill and understanding. There- 
fore it must be evident that whatever explanation the angel 



A GREAT PROPHETIC PERIOD 119 

gives here, applies in some way to the twenty-three hundred 
days. 

THE SEVENTY WEEKS 

Again referring to the chart, on line G, extending from 
11 to 17, will be found the diagram of the seventy weeks, or 
the 490 years, showing that they started at the same time as 
the twenty-three hundred days. This is shown above on 
lineF. 

' ( Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon 
thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end 
of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring 
in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and 
prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. ' ' Dan. 9 :24. 

It is worthy of note that the very matter left unexplained 
to Daniel in chapter eight was that concerning the subject of 
time, the twenty-three hundred days ; and as Gabriel starts out 
in chapter nine to complete his unfulfilled command to make 
Daniel understand the vision, he begins with the same, on the 
subject of time, by saying, "Seventy weeks are determined 
upon thy people and. upon thy holy city." 

Another evidence that shows the close connection between 
the twenty-three hundred days and the seventy weeks, is 
that the proper rendering of the word " determined " is to ''cut 
off." Gesenius, in his Hebrew Lexicon, defines this word as 
follows : 

"Properly, to cut off; tropically, to divide; and so to de- 
termine, to decree." 

As there had been no period previously mentioned from 
which the seventy weeks could be cut 'off, except that twenty- 
three hundred days, therefore the seventy weeks must be cut 
off from that long period. 

Without doubt the reason why our translators did not give 
the true meaning to the word determined, is because they did 
not see the connection between chapters eight and nine, and 
as they knew of no period from which the seventy weeks could 
be cut off, they give the word its tropical instead of its literal 
meaning. 

The twenty-three hundred days cannot be literal days, as 
they would make only a little over six years for the fulfillment 
of all that was to take place during that time, which wOuld be 
absurd. Therefore this must be a prophetic period based on 
the year-day principle, thus making each day stand for a year. 
The Scripture rule for this interpretation is found in Eze. 
4:6, and Num. 14:34. 



120 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Then the seventy weeks, or 490 days, or 490 literal years, 
were to be cut off from the 2300 days, or 2300 years. During 
the 490 years that were allotted to the Jews, certain things 
were to transpire. The transgression was to be finished; that 
is, the Jewish people were to fill up the cup of their iniquity, 
which they did in rejecting and crucifying Christ. An end of 
sins, or sin-offerings, was to be made. This was done when 
Christ was offered on Calvary. ^Reconciliation for iniquity was 
to be provided. This was accomplished by the sacrificial death 
of the Son of God. Everlasting righteousness was to be brought 
in. This was fulfilled in the righteousness manifested in 
Christ's sinless life. The vision and the prophecy were to be 
sealed up, or made sure. The fact that the events that were 
predicted in the prophecy, were literally fulfilled at the close 
of the four hundred and ninety years, is positive proof that the 
interpretation of the whole vision, including the twenty-three 
hundred years, is correct. The anointing of the Most Holy, has 
reference to Christ's entering upon His work as High Priest 
in the heavenly sanctuary, when He returned to His Father 
at the close of His work here upon earth, and began His minis- 
tration there. 

Having learned that the ninth chapter explains the eighth, 
and that the seventy weeks, or 490 years, was the first part 
of that long period of 2300 years, we will now endeavor to 
find the starting point of both. 

By referring to the chart, on lines H and I, extending 
from 11 to 17, will be seen an object lesson illustrating the 
seventy weeks divided into periods of seven weeks, or 49 
years, sixty-two weeks, or 434 years, and one week, or 7 
years. 

The following Scripture gives the real key to the starting 
point of the twenty- three hundred days, or 2300 years: "Know 
therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the 
commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the 
Messiah, the Prince, shall, be seven weeks, and threescore 
and two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, 
even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks 
shall Messiah be cut off, but not for -Himself. . . . And 
He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week : and 
in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the 
oblation to cease." Dan. 9:25-27. 

In Dan. 9:25-27 the seventy weeks are divided into three 
parts ; the seven weeks, the sixty- two weeks, and the one week. 
And the angel tells us that when the commandment goes 



A GREAT PROPHETIC PERIOD 121 

forth to restore and build Jerusalem, the seventy weeks would 
begin. The first decree that was issued after this time, in any- 
way affecting Jerusalem, was the decree of Cyrus, 536 B. C, 
for the return of the Jews and the rebuilding of the temple. 
Ezra 1 :l-4. But this provided only for the temple, and fell far 
short of granting the complete restoration to which the 
prophecy pointed. This work was hindered by the enemies of 
the Jews in the reign of Artaxerxes. The decree of Cyrus was 
reaffirmed by Darius Hystaspes, 519 B. C. (Eze. 6:1-12) and 
the work on the temple again went forward. But this decree, 
like that of Cyrus, was too limited in its provisions to meet 
the specifications of the prophecy. After a time Ezra obtained 
a decree from Artaxerxes Longimanus, in the seventh year 
of his reign, 457 B. C. (see marginal date of Ezra 7), containing 
provisions for the complete restoration of the Jewish state. 
This decree is found in full in Ezra 7 :12-26. When this went 
forth, the prophecy was met in full, all three of these decrees, 
with that of the God of Israel, constituting "the command- 
ment to restore and build Jerusalem." This is stated in Ezra 
6:14, as follows: '-'And they builded (Jerusalem) and finished 
it, according to the commandment of the God of Israel, and 
according to the command of Cyrus, and Darius, and Arta- 
xerxes king of Persia." 

"It is by the canon of Ptolemy that the great prophetical 
period of seventy weeks is fixed. This canon places the sev- 
enth year of Artaxerxes in the year B. C. 457 ; and the accuracy 
of this canon is demonstrated by the concurrent agreement 
of more than twenty eclipses. This date cannot be changed 
from B. C. 457, without first demonstrating the inaccuracy of 
Ptolemy's canon. To do this it would be necessary to show 
that the large number of eclipses by which its accuracy has 
been repeatedly demonstrated have not been correctly com- 
puted; and such a result would unsettle every chronological 
date, and leave the settlement of epochs and the adjustment of 
eras entirely at the mercy of every dreamer, so that chronology 
would be of no more value than mere guesswork." — Uriah 
Smith. 

Seventy weeks, or forty-nine years, were allotted to the 
work of rebuilding the city. This is shown on the diagram, 
on lines H and I, between 11 and 12. This work was completed 
in the last act of reformation by Nehemiah, in the fifteenth year 
of Darius, 408 B. C, just forty-nine years from the commence- 
ment of the work by Ezra, 457 B. C. (See Prideaux's vol. 1, p. 
322.) Sixty-two weeks, or four hundred and thirty-four years 



122 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

more, were to extend to Messiah the Prince. See lines H and I, 
between 12 and 15. Forty-nine years added to 434 would 
make 483 years,- which were to extend from 457 B. C. to A. D. 
27, or to the baptism of Christ. Christ was set forth as 
the Messiah, or the Anointed, at His baptism, when He was 
anointed with the Holy Ghost. Acts 10:37, 38, says: ''That 
word, ... ye know, which was published throughout all 
Judea, . . . after the baptism which John preached; how 
God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost." This 
period therefore extended to A. D. 27, as seen on line 15, ex- 
tending from line H to line Q, the time when Christ was bap- 
tized and commenced His earthly ministry. John began his 
ministry in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar (Luke 3:1), 
which was in A. D. 27 ; and Christ entered upon His work six 
months later, or in the autumn of the same year. At line 
15 and K, are the words, "Autumn A. D. 27." Thus the sixty- 
nine weeks, or four hundred and eighty-three years, reckoning 
from the autumn of 457 B. C, when Ezra commenced his work 
at Jerusalem, brings us to the autumn of A. D. 27. It was 
at this time, shortly after His baptism, that Christ went forth 
proclaiming, "The time is fulfilled" (Mark 1:15); which can 
refer to nothing else but the fulfillment of this period which 
was to extend to Messiah the Prince. 

The record continues, "After three score and two weeks 
shall Messiah be cut off, but not for Himself. . . . And He 
shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in 
the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and oblation 
to cease." These expressions without doubt point to the 
crucifixion of Christ. See diagram on the chart, between lines 
I and J, and 15 and 16. Christ's preaching continued just 
three and one-half years, as He attended but four passovers, 
at the last of which He was crucified, in the spring of A. D. 31. 

There still remain three and one-half years to complete 
the one week, or seven years of the last of the seventy weeks 
of Dan. 9 :24-27. These would extend to the autumn of A. D. 
34. At this point we have the grand termination of that whole 
prophetic period of seventy weeks, or four hundred and ninety 
years, which was allotted to the Jews. The great events that 
marked the close of this period were the formal rejection of 
the gospel of Christ by the Jewish Sanhedrin, the martyrdom 
of Stephen, the persecution of the disciples, and the turning 
of the apostles to the Gentiles. See Acts 9 -.1-18. 

The principal events of this seven yes* a s are pictured on the 
chart as follows : The baptism of Christ in A. D. 27, is shown 



A GREAT PROPHETIC PERIOD 123 

on line 15, between G and Q; and just to the right of line 15, 
and immediately above line J, are the figures 3V2j showing it to 
be three and one-half years from the baptism to the cross, 
which is seen on line 16, between lines I and J. Then, to the 
right of the cross, on line 16, just above line J, the figures S 1 /^ 
again appear, showing that it was three and one-half years 
from the crucifixion to the end of the seventy weeks, A. D. 
34, or the time when the gospel went to the Gentiles, as shown 
on line 17, between lines J and Q. 

The four hundred and ninety years which began 457 B. C, 
having reached their termination in A. D. 34, and these being 
"cut off" from the twenty- three hundred years, there would 
remain just eighteen hundred and ten years of the twenty-three 
hundred year period. As the seventy weeks reached down 
thirty-four years into the Christian era, the eighteen hundred 
and ten years still remaining of the twenty-three hundred 
years, would reach to A. D. 1844. This, therefore, is the date 
for the ending of that long prophetic period which was to 
reach to the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary. See figure 
diagram on chart, between lines 9 and 13, and extending from 
line L to just below line M. 

The first forty-nine years of the twenty-three hundred years 
are positively established by five well authenticated dates, as 
seen on line I, between lines 11 and 17; First, the date of its 
commencement, 457 B. C, as seen on line 11, beginning at line 
F, and continuing down to line Q ; second, the end of the forty- 
nine years which was allotted to the restoration or rebuilding 
of Jerusalem, in 408 B. C, shown on line 12, between F and I; 
third, the end of the four hundred " and thirty-four years 
which was to reach from 408 B. C. to the baptism of Christ in 
the autumn of A. D. 27, on line 15, between lines H and Q; 
fourth, from this time on to the crucifixion of Christ in the 
middle of the seventieth week, A. D. 31. See line 16, between 
lines H and Q ; and, fifth, the end of the seventieth week, or of 
the entire four hundred and ninety years, which was allotted to 
the Jews as a whole, and ended in A. D. 34, when the Jewish 
Sanhedrin formally rejected Christ. See line 17, between lines 
H and Q. 

Just above line L, between 9 and 13, is the statement, 
"Jewish year begins in the spring." And at the intersection 
of lines K and 11 it is shown that the decree did not go into 
full force until autumn, or the middle of the year, 457 B. C, 
the spring of this year being shown at the left of line 11, 
between lines J and K. By following line 11 to Q, this date 



124 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

(457 B. C.) will be seen in connection with the time line P. 
Thus the diagram just below line J, between 11 and 14, shows 
that it took only 456% years to span the time between the 
fall of 457 B. C. and the spring of A. D. 1, on line 14. From 
then to the autumn of A. D. 27, shown at the intersection of 
K and 15, when Christ was baptized, it was twenty-six and 
one-half years. See diagram just below line J, and between 
14 and 15. Then the diagram between L and M and 10 and 11, 
shows that 456% plus 26%, equals 483 years. And by adding 
the 7 more years, it will equal 490 years. Now by looking at 
the diagram of figures between lines L and M, extending from 
11 to 13, it can be easily understood that the 2300 days, or 2300 
literal years which began in the autumn of 457 B. C, ends 
in the autumn of A. D. 1844. 

And at that time began the cleansing of the heavenly 
sanctuary, or the investigative judgment. This work is again 
brought to view under what is known as the first angel's 
message of Rev. 14:6, 7, where it says that the everlasting 
gospel shall be preached "to every nation, and kindred, and 
tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and 
give glory to Him; for the HOUR OF HIS JUDGMENT IS 
COME; and worship Him that made heaven, and earth, and 
the sea, and the fountains of waters." While the word hour, 
in this verse, does not refer in any way to definite time, yet it 
does show that it will be a very short work. 

We are living in a very solemn time, and the work that 
is now going on in the heavenly sanctuary, is one that should 
concern each person living on this earth today. In fact their 
names will each come up for consideration there, in the hour 
of judgment, regardless of their wishes or desires. At this 
time it will be determined who among the dead shall be raised 
in the first resurrection, and who among the living shall be 
changed from mortal to immortal at the second coming of 
Christ. It will also be decided at this, time, who among the 
dead as well as among the living, shall be left to have their 
part in the fearful scenes of the second death at the end of the 
one thousand years, when the second resurrection shall take 
place, and all the wicked who have ever lived on this earth 
will meet their final reward,— ETERNAL DEATH. 



HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS WORK 125 

THE HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS 
WORK 

The illustrations on the top of the chart on line A, from 
1 to 30, represent some of the works of Christ and the Holy- 
Spirit in this world. 

The Bible has much to say of the work and office of the 
Holy Spirit, while but little is revealed of His personality. 
However, there are some texts which prove quite conclusively 
that the Holy Spirit is not only a personality, but that He is 
the third person of the Godhead. 

Paul, in 1 Cor. 2 :10, speaking of the things which God has 
prepared for them that love Him, says : "But God hath revealed 
them unto us by His Spirit ; for the Spirit searcheth all things, 
yea, the deep things of God." Here the apostle speaks of the 
Holy Spirit as a separate personality; as one who searches 
the deep things of God, and then reveals them unto us. 

1 Cor. 12:11 says, "But all these worketh that one and 
the self-same Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He 
will." And Rom. 8:27 says, "And He [God] that searcheth 
the hearts knoweth the mind of the Spirit." From these two 
Scriptures it is evident that the Holy Spirit is a person, and 
has a mind and will of His own, and that He uses these as He 
desires. 

In Rom. 8:26 (R. V.) are the words, "The Spirit Himself 
maketh intercession for us with groanings which can not be 
uttered." This prayer, or intercession, is made by the Holy 
Spirit to God the Father, showing two separate and distinct 
persons. 

And again, in John 16 :12-14, Christ says, "I have yet many 
things to say unto you, but ye can not bear them now. How- 
beit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you 
into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but what- 
soever He shall hear, that shall He speak; and He will show 
you things to come. He shall glorify Me ; for He shall receive 
of Mine, and shall show it unto you. ' ' These Scriptures prove 
conclusively that the Holy Spirit is a separate personality from 
the Father and Son, as it speaks of His mind, His will, His 
hearing, His speaking, His receiving, and His giving; and 
Christ, each time in speaking of the Holy Spirit, uses the per- 
sonal pronoun He ; in fact, in one case it is made more emphatic 
where the words He Himself are used in close connection. Then 
again, Isa. 48:16 says, "Now the Lord God, and His Holy 
Spirit, hath sent me." 



126 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THE THIRD PERSON OF THE GODHEAD 

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Fa- 
ther, the Word [or Christ, John 1:1, 14], and the Holy Ghost, 
[or Holy Spirit], and these three are one." 1 John 5:7. The 
three persons of the Godhead, who have their home in the 
heaven of heavens from whence comes the ruling power of the 
universe, are not one in personality, but one only in character, 
purpose, plan, and desires. In Matt. 28:19, this thought is 
further carried out, where it says, "Go ye therefore, and teach 
all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of 
the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." This Scripture not only 
shows that the Godhead is composed of three separate and 
distinct persons, but it gives their names, and the order of 
their respective positions. 

Paul, speaking of the final restitution of all things, says, 
"And when all things shall be subdued unto Him [Christ], 
then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him [the 
Father] that put all things under Him [Christ], that God may 
be all in all." 1 Cor. 15:28. 

THE PERSONALITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 

G. G. Campbell Morgan, in his work on the "Holy Spirit," 
pages 25 to 32, says: 

"Four things are contained within the realm of personality 
— Will, Intelligence, Power, and Capacity for Love. A. person 
is a being who can be approached, trusted or doubted, loved or 
hated, adored or insulted. (These essential parts of person- 
ality belong to the Holy Spirit.) 

"In the third century of the Christian era, Paul of Samo- 
sota advanced a theory denying the Divinity of Christ, and 
regarding the Holy Spirit as an influence, as an exertion of a 
Divine energy and power." 

"The great mass of Christian people refused to accept the 
doctrine, but, alas ! passed unconsciously under its chilling 
influence, and unknowingly almost the whole church came to 
think of the Spirit of God as an influence." 

"In the Authorized Version, the personal pronoun which 
refers to the Holy Spirit is translated to the neuter it, an index 
of the trend of thought among the Christian people. Men 
prayed of the Holy Spirit as of it, an influence, an energy, 
proving that the Socinian thought had chilled the zeal and 
enthusiasm of Christian doctrine concerning the Holy Spirit." 

"One of the most remarkable signs in the present time of 
the revival of the truth of the personality of the Spirit, is 
the re-introduction in the Revised Version of the masculine 
pronoun wherever the Spirit is referred to. In that appar- 
ently simple and insignificant matter, there is a clear revela- 
tion of the fact that God is calling His people everywhere to a 



HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS WORK 127 

recognition of the most important doctrine of the personality 
of the Spirit." 

"The Gospel of John contains Christ's systematic teaching 
concerning the Holy Spirit. He speaks of Him as the Para- 
clete. This is the title of a Person. It is indeed one of the in- 
communicable, untranslatable words of the Scripture. Neither 
Comforter nor Advocate fully express its meaning. ' ' 

"In these discourses, when speaking of the Paraclete, Jesus 
does not, in one single instance, use the word which can be 
construed as indicating thought of the Spirit as an influence. 
'He shall teach, He shall bear witness, He shall convict, He 
shall guide.' John 14:26; 15:27; 16:8, 13. These activities 
attributed to the Holy Spirit must be activities, not an influ- 
ence depending upon another and separate will, but the activi- 
ties of a Person of One who unites within His own being all 
the essential elements of Personality, Will, Intelligence, Power, 
and Love. Whether in the solemn warnings of the Synoptic 
Gospel, or in the teachings concerning the mission of the 
Spirit in the Gospel of John, the fact is most evidently set 
forth, that in the mind of Christ the Holy Spirit was thought 
of, not as an influence, an energy merely, but as One capable 
of exercising functions and doing deeds which were impossible 
to any other than a Person." 

HOLY SPIRIT DIVINE 

' 'Again, the Holy Spirit is not only a Person, but a Divine 
Person. . . . The works attributed to the Holy Spirit must 
be the works of Divinity. Genesis declares that out of the 
chaos, cosmos was brought by His brooding and force. Gen. 
1 :2. In the Gospel of John regeneration is declared to be His 
work. John 3:5. Paul distinctly states that God will 'quicken 
our mortal bodies' through the Spirit. Rom. 8:11. Creation, 
regeneration, resurrection, these are works which can only be 
brought about by infinite power, and .therefore the Spirit is 
not only a Person, but a Divine Person." 

THE TRINITY 

Speaking of The Trinity, Mr. Morgan says : 

''The first hint of plurality in the unite of the Godhead is 
found in the words : And God said, Let Us make man in Our 
image, after Our likeness." Gen. 1:26. "The Bible story 
of creation reflects the presence of the three Persons in the 
Trinity, the Father, as original source ; the Son, as intermedi- 
ary; the Spirit, as the medium through which creation came 
into being." Gen. 1:1, John 1:3. 

1 'And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway 
from the water; and lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, 
and He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and com- 
ing upon Him: and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This 
is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased.' Matt. 3:16, 
17. The voice of the Father is heard from the heavens, an- 
nouncing His pleasure in the Son, while the anointing Spirit 



128 THE STORY OF THE AGES 



descends upon Him. . . . Thus, at the outset of Christ's 
public ministry, the truth of the Trinity was declared by a 
solemn manifestation. ' ' 

" Again at -the close of His ministration on earth, after His 
resurrection, He committed to His disciples "the great bap- 
tismal formula, which contains the most simple and concise 
statement of the Trinity that is to be found in the whole Scrip- 
ture: 'Baptizing them into the NAME of the FATHER and of 
the SON and of the HOLY SPIRIT. ' Matt. 28 .19. The phrase 
OP THE, in each case marks the separation of personality, but 
the singular number of the NAME, by which these are pref- 
aced, marks the unity of the Godhead." 

"The Holy Spirit is always spoken of as the third Person 
in the Trinity." 

Another writing on this subject in Tract Series B, No. 7, 
page 63, says: 

"The Comforter that Christ promised to send after He 
ascended to heaven, is the Spirit in all the fullness of the God- 
head. . . . There are THREE LIVING PERSONS of the 
HEAVENLY TRIO; in the name of these THREE GREAT 
POWERS— the FATHER, the SON, and the HOLY SPIRIT, 
those who receive Christ by living faith, are baptized. ' ' 

Spurgeon says of the Trinity: "The doctrine of the Trinity 
is specially taught in the Scripture. . . . We know that 
the Father hath laid the foundations and fixed those solid 
beams of light on which the blue arches of the sky are sus- 
tained; but we know with equal certainty that Jesus Christ, 
the eternal Logos, was with the Father in the beginning, and 
' without Him was not anything made that was made;.' more- 
over we have equal certainty that the Holy Spirit had a hand 
in the creation, for we are told that 'the earth was without 
form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the earth; 
and the Spirit of the Lord moved upon the face of the waters ; ' 
and brooding with His dove-like wing, He brought out of the 
egg of chaos the mighty thing, the fair round world." — Ser- 
mon No. 201, page 289. 

THE POWER AND WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 

The Bible shows that God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Son, 
and the Holy Spirit each had a part in the work of creation. 
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, 
and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with 
God. All things were made by Him ; and without Him was not 
anything made that was made." John 1 :l-3. 

Christ's work in creation is further stated in the following 
Scriptures: "For by Him were all things created, that are in 
heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether 
they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all 
things were created by Him, and for Him. And He is before 
all things, and by Him all things consist" [or hold together]. 



HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS WORK 129 

Col. 1:16. "God . . . hath in these last days spoken unto 
us by His Son, . . .by Whom also He made the worlds.' ' 
Heb. 1 :1, 2, R. V. 

That the Holy Spirit also had an active part in the work 
of creation, is clearly shown in Gen. 1:1, 2: "In the beginning 
God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was 
waste and void ; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. 
And the Spirit of God moved [margin, was brooding] upon 
the face of the waters." 

The work of the Spirit of God in moving, or brooding, 
over the face of the earth in its original chaotic condition at 
the beginning of creation, is represented in the illustration 
on the chart, at the intersection of lines A and 4, where the 
dove is used to represent the Holy Spirit. It was in this form 
that the Holy Spirit came at the baptism of Christ. Mark 
1 :9, 10. 

The Holy Spirit is observed again as an active agent in 
the re-creation or restoration of all things, as expressed in 
Ps. 104:30: "Thou sendeth forth Thy Spirit, they are created: 
and Thou renewest -the face of the earth. ' ' 

In Mr. Spurgeon's sermon on "The Holy Spirit," No. 30, 
page 230, is the following: 

"In the second verse of the 1st chapter of Genesis, we read, 
'And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was 
upon the face of the deep..' " Speaking of the earth he says, 
"And it was entirely without form, and void; and darkness 
was upon the face of the deep. The Spirit came, and stretch- 
ing His broad wings, bade the darkness disperse, and as He 
moved over it, all the different portions of matter came unto 
their places, and it was no longer 'without form, and void;' 
but became round like its sister planets, and moved, singing 
the high praises of God." 

THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE 
On line A of the chart, from 1 to 3, will be seen an illustra- 
tion intended to give some idea of the universe, as represented 
by the revolving sun systems. 

While the Holy Spirit had an active part in the creation 
of our world, this was by no means the limit of His work, but 
instead, it proves that He had the same part to act in the 
I creation of the universe. The Scripture evidences which sup- 
port this claim are found in Job 26:7, 9, 11, 13. "He [God] 
stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth 
the earth upon nothing. He holdeth back the face of His 
throne, and spreadeth His cloud upon it ; the pillars of heaven 
tremble, and are astonished at His reproof, [and] by His 



130 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Spirit He hath garnished the heavens.' ' Webster defines 
"garnish" as meaning "to adorn, to embellish, to ornament." 
Then the garnishing of the heavens can mean nothing less 
than the creation of those grand and beautiful stars and sun 
systems that stud the heavenly vault like glittering diamonds, 
and are scattered through endless space. For further study on 
this subject, see chapter on "Wonders of the Universe." 

The fact that the Holy Spirit had a very important part 
to act in the creation of such a grand and beautiful universe, 
does not in any way detract from the glory of the Father 
or of the Son. There are many Scriptures that would lead one 
to believe that God, the Father, is the Supreme Architect, 
while His Son, Jesus Christ, is the Master Builder, or the 
Word that gives command, and that the Holy Spirit, or the 
divine power of the Godhead, is the One that performs the 
work in both the spiritual and physical part of the universe. 

The Scripture does not say that the Spirit garnished the 
heavens, but that God did the work by His Spirit; in other 
words, the Spirit was the active agent through which the 
work was done. 

SPURGEON ON THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE 

Mr. Spurgeon in his sermon No. 30, page 230, says: 
"The creation of the heavens above us is said to be the 
work of God 's Spirit. This you will see at once by referring to 
... Job 26 :13, 'By His Spirit He hath garnished the heav- 
ens ; His hand hath formed the crooked serpent. ' All the stars 
of heaven are said to have been placed aloft by the Spirit, and 
one particular constellation called the 'crooked serpent' is 
specially pointed out as His handiwork. 'He looseth the bands 
of Orion; He bindeth the sweet influence of the Pleiades, and 
guides Arcturus with his sons.' He made all those stars that 
shine in heaven. The heavens were garnished by His hands, 
and He formed the 'crooked serpent' by His might." 

THE HOLY SPIRIT EVERYWHERE PRESENT 

The Holy Spirit, though having a personality, can, through 
His own power and the ministration of angels, who are them- 
selves ministering spirits (Heb. 1:14), be in close touch with 
each child of God, in every part of the world, at the same time. 
More than this, He can, by this same means, not only communi- 
cate with, but at the same time, read the heart and mind of each 
individual in this world. David, in Ps. 139 :7-9, says, "Whither 
shall I go from Thy Spirit? or whither shall I flee from Thy 
presence? If I ascend up into heaven, Thou art there ; if I make 
my bed in hell [the grave], behold, Thou art there. If I take 



HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS WORK 131 

the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts 
of the sea, even there shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right 
hand shall hold me." 

"Thou knowest my downsittings and mine uprisings, Thou 
understandest my thoughts afar off. Thou searchest out my 
path and my lying down, and art acquainted with my ways. 
For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, Lord, Thou 
knowest it altogether. Thou hast beset me behind and before, 
and laid thine hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonder- 
ful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it." Ps. 139:1-6. 
R. V. 

The Lord has never explained in His Word how it is that 
the Holy Spirit can be in close touch with every living being 
throughout this vast universe, but it is true nevertheless. For 
God, by His Holy Spirit, in the last few years, has been reveal- 
ing many wonderful things to the inhabitants of this world, 
that have astonished them beyond measure. Things that years 
ago would have been pronounced utterly impossible, are now 
taking place before our eyes, and are becoming quite common. 
The telephone, whereby two persons can talk with each other, 
easily recognizing the tone of voice, although a thousand miles 
apart, is indeed wonderful. Wireless telegraphy, the first in- 
vention of the kind whereby man could transmit messages 
through the air without the aid of wire, seems almost incred- 
ible. It enables a man to sit in his office, and hold an extensive 
communication with a friend on a steamship in mid ocean, 
over a thousand miles away. 

These things were not mentioned with the idea of, in any 
way, explaining by what means the Holy Spirit accomplishes 
His wonderful work, but simply to help us to realize that when 
puny, mortal man can perform such wonderful things, what can 
not the One do, who has been an active agent in the creation 
of every element, both spiritual and material in God's vast 
universe ! 

ANGELS AND THEIR WORK 

The angels have an important part to act in connection 
with the plan of salvation in the earth. Ps. 103:20, 21, says, 
" Bless the Lord, ye His angels, that excel in strength, that do 
His commandments, harkening unto the voice of His word. 
Bless ye the Lord, all ye His hosts ; ye minsters of His, that do 
His pleasure." From this we learn that the angelic hosts are 
ever harkening unto the Lord, and are always ready to do His 
bidding. 



132 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Matt. 18:2, 10 says, "And Jesus called a little child unto 
Him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, . . . Take 
heed that ye ,clespise not one of tliese little ones ; for I say 
unto you, that in heaven their angels do always behold the 
face of My Father which is in heaven." 

After Peter was delivered from prison, the damsel met 
him at the gate, recognized his voice, and returned, telling his 
brethren. But the brethren refused to believe that she had 
seen him, and said to her, "It is his angel." 

From these Scriptures we are led to believe that every 
person born into this world has an attending angel to watch 
over and care for him through life. And although many pay 
no attention to the warnings and admonitions given by their 
attending angel, yet he follows them as long as life lasts. 

"The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that 
fear Him, and delivereth them. ' ' Ps. 34 :7. And Heb. 1 :14 tells 
us that angels are "ministering spirits sent forth to minister 
for them who shall be heirs of salvation." In Matt. 24:30, 31, 
Christ says that at His second coming the angels shall gather 
the saints. "And they shall see the Son of Man coming in the 
clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall 
send His angels, . . . and they shall gather together His 
elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the 
other." 

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE PLAN OF SALVATION 

The Holy Spirit, then, was not only the acting power be- 
hind the physical creation, but He is also the acting or moving 
power, under the Father and Son, behind the gospel of salva- 
tion for fallen man. 

The same creative power is needed to make a true child 
of God now that was required to make the first man at creation. 
David besought the Lord to create in him a clean heart (Ps. 
51:10); and Job says, "The Spirit of God hath made me." 
Job. 33:4. Jesus said, "Except a man be born of . . . the 
Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which 
is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the 
Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I say unto thee, Ye must be 
born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou 
hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, 
and whither it goeth; so is every one that is born of the 
Spirit." John 3:5-8. 



HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS WORK 133 

THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE OLD DISPENSATION 

The Spirit has been in the world, moving upon men's hearts, 
from the very beginning of the work of redemption. The 
Scriptures show that the presence of the Holy Spirit existed 
throughout the old dispensation as an active agent in the plan 
of salvation. Nehemiah, speaking of God's gifts to Israel, says, 
' ' Thou gavest also Thy good Spirit to instruct them. ' ' Neh. 
9 :20. Stephen, in Acts 7 :51, speaking to the Jews of his day, 
says, "Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost; as your fathers 
did, so do ye." From this we learn that the Holy Ghost 
worked upon the hearts of the children of Israel in the old 
dispensation the same as He does in the Christian era. "Balaam 
lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents: 
. . . and the Spirit of God came upon him." Num. 24:2. 
"Many years," says Nehemiah, "didst thou forbear them, and 
testified against them by thy SPIRIT." Neh. 9:30. Also Isaiah 
says of the Jews, "But they rebelled, and vexed His HOLY 
SPIRIT." Isa. 63:10. 

THE FRUIT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT 

In Gal. 5:22, 23, Paul says, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, 
joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, 
temperance;" and it is by the Holy Spirit that "the love of 
God is shed abroad in our hearts." Eom. 5:5. It is by this 
same means also that we are made "the epistle of Christ, 
. . . written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living 
God ; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart. ' ' 
2 Cor. 3 :3. The Holy Spirit not only^ writes the law in our 
hearts, but enables us to keep it after it is written there. "And 
I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in 
My statutes, and ye shall keep My judgments and do them. 
Eze. 36:27. 

ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE BIRTH OF JOHN AND CHRIST 

The Scriptures tell us that the angel Gabriel, who stands 
in the presence of God, told Zacharias that his wife was to bear 
a son, and that they should call his name John, and that he 
would be filled with the Holy Ghost from his birth. Luke 
1:15, 19. 

"And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from 
God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to . . . the 
. . . virgin . . . Mary. . . . And the angel an- 
swered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon 
thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: 



134 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee 
shall be called the Son of God." Verses 26, 27, 35. 

THE HOLY SPIRIT'S CONNECTION WITH THE LIFE OF CHRIST 

"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: "When 
as His mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came 
together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.' ' Matt. 
1:18. Joseph's first impulse was to put her away, thinking 
she was not a virtuous woman; but "the angel of the Lord 
appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of 
David, fear not to take unto thee Mary, thy wife; for that 
which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall 
bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus." 
Verses 20, 21. 

THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST 

On line A of the chart, between 11 and 14, is an illustra- 
tion of the baptism of Christ. 

"Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out 
of the water : and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, and 
He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting 
upon Him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is My 
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Matt. 3:16, 17. 
And after the baptism, "Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost, 
returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the 
wilderness." Luke 4:1. 

The three persons of the Godhead were represented at the 
baptism of Christ. We may note here that the baptism of 
Christ was by immersion, for, after the ceremony was per- 
formed, He came up "out of the water." Paul exhorts the 
Christian to be baptized by immersion as Christ was. He says, 
"Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism unto death, 
that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of 
the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." 
Rom. 6:4. 

The Holy Spirit had a leading part to act in connection 
with the birth and life of Christ on earth, attending Him with 
power in all His work, from His baptism until He was taken 
up into heaven, forty days after His resurrection. Acts 10 :38, 
says that "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy 
Ghost and with power : Who went about doing good, and heal- 
ing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with 
Him." 

Christ, who was the divine Son of God before He came to 
this earth to die, was still the same Son of God after He had 



HOLY SPIRIT AND HIS WORK 135 

taken our nature upon Himself, yet He did not use His divine 
power to aid Himself in gaining the victories over the flesh 
and the devil, or in doing any of the works of healing. But, as 
shown in the Scriptures quoted, the power that enabled Him to 
do the works that He did, and to gain the victories that He 
gained, was the Holy Spirit. This same Spirit is ever ready to 
render us like assistance. 

Speaking of Himself, in Isa. 61:1, Christ says, "The Spirit 
of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord hath anointed 
Me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent Me 
to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the 
captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are 
bound." 

THE HOLY SPIRIT CHRIST'S REPRESENTATIVE ON EARTH 

When Christ came into the world, He came to represent 
the Father. He was to be called Emmanuel, "which being 
interpreted, is God with us." Matt. 1:23. Even Christ's 
angelic name, Michael, the meaning, of which is, "Who is like 
God," indicates this. "In Him," says Paul, "dwelleth all 
the fullness of the Godhead bodily." Col. 2:9. Speaking of 
Himself and His mission, Christ said: "The Son can do nothing 
of Himself, but what He seeth the Father do : for what things 
soever He doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." John 
5:19. "When ye have lifted up the Son of Man, then shall 
ye know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but 
as My Father hath taught Me, I speak these things." John 
8 :28. 

So likewise with the Holy Spirit, the third person of the 
Godhead. His special mission into the world is to repre- 
sent Christ, not Himself. As Christ was about to leave the 
world, He said: "I will not leave you orphans (margin): 
I will come to you." "I will pray the Father, and He shall 
give you another Comforter." "When He, the Spirit of truth, 
is come, He will guide you into all truth ; for He shall not speak 
of Himself ; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak : 
and He will show you things to come. He shall glorify Me: 
for He shall receive of Mine, and shall show it unto you." 
John 14:18, 16; 16:13, 14. 

Bengel states this truth concisely thus: "The Son glorifies 
the Father; the Spirit glorifies the Son." And A. J. Gordon, 
in his excellent little work on "The Ministry of the Spirit," 
page 47, significantly asks :"What, then, is the office of the 
Holy Ghost, so far as we can interpret it, but that of commu- 



136 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

nicating and applying the work of Christ to the human heart ? ' ' 
And he adds (page 135), "The Holy Spirit, as coming down 
to fill the place of the ascended Redeemer, has rightly been 
called 'the Vicar of Jesus Christ.' To Him the entire admin- 
istration of the church has been committed until the Lord 
shall return from glory." Not a man, but the Holy Spirit 
Himself, therefore, is the Vicar, or personal representative of 
Christ on earth. 



THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE GEN- 
ERAL RESURRECTION 

BY SPURGEON. SERMON NO. 30, PAGES 230, 235 
"We have reason to believe from Scripture that the resur- 
rection of the dead, whilst it will be effected by the voice of 
God and His Word (the Son) shall also be brought about by 
the Spirit." "If you look at the 104th Psalm, and the 29th and 
30th verse, you will read, 'Thou hidest Thy face, they are 
troubled ; Thou takest away their breath, they die, and return 
to their dust. Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, they are created ; 
and Thou renewest the face of the earth.' 'He that raised up 
Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by 
His Spirit that dwelleth in you.' That same power which 
raised Jesus Christ from the dead shall also quicken your 
mortal bodies. The power of the resurrection is perhaps one 
of the finest proofs of the work of the Spirit. Ah ! my friends, 
if this earth could but have its mantle torn away for a little 
while, if the green sod could be cut from it, and we could 
look about six feet deep into its bowels, what a world it would 
seem! What should we see? Bones, carcasses, rottenness, 
worms, corruption. And you would say, ' Can these dry bones 
live? Can they start up? Yes! in a moment in the twinkling 
of an eye, at the last trump, the dead shall be raised. He 
speaks, they are alive ! See them scattered ; bone comes to his 
bone ! See them naked ; flesh comes upon them ! See them still 
lifeless; 'Come from the four winds, breath and breathe 
upon these slain!' When the wind (or power) of the Holy 
Spirit comes, they live, and they stand upon their feet, an ex- 
ceeding great army." 



SABBATH REFORM BY CHRIST 

On line B of the chart, between lines 14 and 18, are the 
words, "Sabbath Reform by Christ." 



SABBATH REFORM BY CHRIST 137 

A reform on Sabbath keeping was much needed in the time 
of Christ. The scribes and Pharisees had so loaded the Sabbath 
with senseless exactions and human traditions that its true 
meaning was almost completely lost. Instead of its being a 
delight and a blessing, it had become a grievous burden. 

Christ said, "I and My Father are one." John 10 :30. Their 
ideas then on Sabbath keeping must have been the same. Christ 
also said, ' ' I can of Mine Own self do nothing. ' ' John 5 :30. 
And again, "The Father that dwelleth in Me He doeth the 
works." John 14:10. The miracles of healing then that Christ 
performed on the Sabbath, for which the Pharisees and doctors 
of the law accused Him of Sabbath breaking, must have been 
done by the power of God. In giving Christ power to do 
these miracles on the Sabbath, God set His seal of approval to 
Christ's views of the Sabbath and Sabbath keeping. 

Christ came to magnify the law, and make it honorable. 
Isa. 42:21. In nothing was this more strikingly fulfilled than 
in the matter of proper Sabbath observance. So far as the 
record shows, the larger part of Christ's miracles were per- 
formed on the Sabbath. This was done evidently for the pur- 
pose of correcting the narrow and erroneous views of Sabbath 
keeping held and taught by the Jewish leaders at that time. 
This, however, so enraged the scribes and Pharisees that they 
persecuted Him, and sought to slay Him. See Matt. 12 :1-14 ; 
Luke 6 :7-ll ; Mark 3 :6 ; John 5 :16-18. 

From a publication entitled "Christ and the Pharisees," re- 
lating to this subject, we quote the following : 

"Jesus Christ was persecuted because He did not keep the 
Sabbath to suit the Pharisees, the scribes, and the priests in His 
days on earth. 

"Although Lord of the Sabbath Himself, yet He was de- 
nounced as a Sabbath-breaker, was spied upon, was persecuted, 
was rejected, and a robber and a murderer chosen in His 
stead, and was crucified because He would not conform to the 
narrow, bigoted ideas of the Sabbath held by the Pharisees, 
scribes, and doctors 'of laAV. . . . 

" 'Wherefore . . . consider the Apostle and High Priest 
of our profession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to Him that 
sent Him.' Heb. 3:1, 2. 'Wherefore,' that is, for this reason, 
' consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ 
Jesus; who was faithful.' This is true in everything, and to 
us, especially now, is it emphatically true ; and we are to con- 
sider His faithfulness in connection with the Sabbath of the 
Lord, and its keeping, if we would be faithful in the keeping 



138 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

of it. The Sabbath means Christ, and Christ means the Sab- 
bath. The Sabbath is the Lord's own sign of what Jesus Christ 
is to men ; and we are to consider Him in respect to it, and His 
faithfulness in keeping it. 

"And along with that we are to consider His faithfulness 
in keeping the Sabbath under persecution and at the risk of 
His life, and in giving up His life even, rather than to give up 
the Sabbath of the Lord. Because it was for not keeping the 
Sabbath to suit the Pharisees and the scribes and the doctors 
of law, that He was persecuted first ; and when He persisted in 
His way of keeping the Sabbath, that is, the Lord's way, in 
spite of their persecution, then they went about to kill Him. 
And when He would not give it up, then they did kill Him. 
But God raised Him from the dead, and took Him to a world 
where He can keep the Sabbath without being annoyed, and 
without 'disturbing' anybody. . . . 

"And in nothing had the selfishness of the Pharisees and 
doctors of the law taken a more perverse turn than in the mat- 
ter of the Sabbath and its true meaning and purpose. So far 
as the Lord's meaning and purpose in His Sabbath is con- 
cerned, they had utterly lost sight of it themselves, and by 
their traditions and exactions had completely hidden it from 
the minds and hearts of the people. This was the crowning 
result of their perverse-minded course. And as Jesus is Lord 
of the Sabbath, and to bring to mind what He is to mankind 
being the true intent of the Sabbath, it is evident that in 
nothing could His course arouse more bitter antagonism from 
these men than in His words and actions with relation to the 
Sabbath. 

" 'After this there was a feast . . . And a certain man 
was there which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. 
. . . Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed and walk. 
And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his 
bed, and walked ; and on the same day was the Sabbath. The 
Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the Sab- 
bath day; it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed. He an- 
swered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, 
Take up thy bed and walk. Then asked they him, What man 
is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed and walk? And 
he told the Jews that it was Jesus which had made him whole. ' 
John 5:1, 5, 8-12, 15. 

"And of course they then knew who it was who had told 
him to do this 'unlawful' thing— to take up his bed and walk 
on the Sabbath day. 'And therefore did the Jews persecute 



SABBATH REFORM BY CHRIST 139 

Jesus, and sought to slay Him, because He had done these 
things on the Sabbath day. ' John 5 :16. 

1 ' Now think of this. Jesus being Lord of the Sabbath, and 
the Sabbath being the sign of what He is to mankind, and He 
being the living expression of the Sabbath in His life, it was 
impossible for Him to do anything on the Sabbath that was 
not Sabbath-keeping, because, the very doing of it was the ex- 
pression of the meaning of the Sabbath in itself. 

"But His Sabbath-keeping did not suit the Sabbath ideas 
of the Pharisees and doctors of the law, and they called it Sab- 
bath-breaking. So He was counted a Sabbath-breaker when 
He was a Sabbath-keeper. . . . 

"Now Christ's ideas of the Sabbath are God's ideas of the 
Sabbath. The Pharisees' ideas of the Sabbath and Sabbath- 
keeping, being directly the opposite of the Lord Jesus' ideas, 
were wrong. Therefore the controversy in that day between 
Christ and the Pharisees and the doctors of the law was sim- 
ply whether God's ideas of the Sabbath should prevail, or 
whether man's ideas of it should prevail. There was no dis- 
pute then about What day was the Sabbath; the dispute was 
as to what the true Sabbath idea was. In our day it is still 
the same controversy, but with it there is a dispute as to the 
day; yet the thought is the same today that it was then — 
whether God's idea or man's shall prevail. God says the sev- 
enth day is the Sabbath; man says the first day is the Sab- 
bath ; so it is still the same controversy between Christ and the 
Pharisees of this day that it was between Christ and the Phari- 
sees of that day. 

"Well, then, as Jesus was persecuted for Sabbath-break- 
ing when He was keeping the Sabbath truly, all people are in 
good company When they are persecuted for Sabbath-breaking 
when they are keeping it. 

" 'Therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to 
slay Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath 
day. But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, 
and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him, 
because He had not only broken the Sabbath, but also said 
that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.' 
John 5 :16-18. 

"By this we further see that the very first open steps that 
the Pharisees and the doctors of law ever took against Jesus 
Christ to do Him harm in any way were taken because He had 
not kept the Sabbath to suit them. That was the controversy 



140 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

between Christ and them ; and upon this point everything else 
turned. ... 

" 'And it came to pass that He went through the corn fields 
on the Sabbath day ; and His disciples began, as they went, to 
pluck the ears of corn. And the Pharisees said unto Him, 
Behold, why do they on the Sabbath day, that which is not 
lawful ? And He said unto them, Have ye never read what 
David did, when he had need, and was an hungered, he and 
they that were with him ? How he went into the house of God 
in the days of Abiathar, the high priest, and did eat the shew- 
bread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave 
also to them that were with him ? And He said unto them, The 
Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath; 
therefore the Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath.' 

" 'And He entered again into the synagogue; and there 
was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched 
Him, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath day; that 
they might accuse Him.' 

' ' Now notice ; they were already persecuting Him for keep- 
ing the Sabbath, — for breaking the Sabbath as they would have 
it, — and they were ready to kill Him. The next time they have 
an occasion they are watching Him to see whether He will yield 
to their demands, and compromise the Sabbath, or compromise 
Himself, in order to please them. . . . And if He does not 
now compromise and yield to their ideas, . . . they will ac- 
cuse Him, and follow it up in the way which the record shows. 

"And Jesus knew that they were watching Him, and what 
they were thinking about, and what they were watching Him 
for. . . . And that they might have the fullest evidence 
possible, He called to the man with the withered hand, and 
said unto him, 'Stand forth in the niidst.' The man stepped 
out into the midst of the synagogue. This drew everybody's 
attention to Jesus, and the man standing there waiting. Then 
He asked the Pharisees and those who were accusing Him, 'Is 
it lawful to do good on the Sabbath days, or to do evil; to 
save life, or to kill?' They could not say it was lawful to do 
evil, for that would be contrary to all their own teachings; 
and they did not dare to say it was lawful to do good, because 
then they would sanction His healing this man on the Sab- 
bath. . . . 

"He told them to their faces, and they knew it was so, that 
if one of them had a sheep that fell into a ditch on the Sab- 
bath day, they would pull it out to save its life. Whether 
they would do this out of mercy to the sheep, or for fear of 



SABBATH REFORM BY CHRIST 141 

losing the price of it, matters not, they knew it was so. There- 
fore 'they held their peace,' and if they had done the same 
thing oftener they would have done a great deal better. 

" 'And when He had looked round about them with anger, 
being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, He saith unto 
the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out; 
and his hand was restored whole as the other. And the Phari- 
sees went forth, and straightway took council with the Herodi- 
ans against Him, how they might destroy Him.' 

"Here is another element which enters in now. The Phari- 
sees took council with the Herodians. The Herodians were a 
sect of the Jews, who stood at the extreme opposite pole from 
Phariseeism. They derived their title — Herodians — from being 
the friends, the supporters, and the rigid partisans of Herod 
and his house in their rule over the nation of Israel. The Phari- 
sees were the 'godly' of the nation, especially in their own 
estimation. They held themselves to be the righteous ones 
of the nation, and the ones who stood the closest to God, and 
therefore they stood farthest from Herod and from Eome. 
They despised Herod j they hated Rome. The Herodians were 
the political supporters of Herod, and consequently the friends 
of Rome and the Roman power. Therefore as denominations, 
as sects, the Pharisees and the Herodians were just as far apart 
as they could be. ... . 

1 ' Now when the Pharisees saw that Christ was not going to 
yield to their ideas of Sabbath-keeping, they, in order to carry 
out their purpose to kill Him, — it was a far-reaching purpose, — 
joined themselves, not only to their sectarian enemies, but to 
these particular religio-political sectarian enemies, so that they 
could get hold upon Herod, and at the last upon Pilate, so that 
they might have the government on their side; that they 
might have the civil power under their control, and thus make 
effectual their purpose to destroy Jesus. So they entered poli- 
tics. . . . . 

"We may as well carry along the parallel. Haven't we and 
all the people seen the same thing not only in our day, but 
within the last few years? Haven't we seen a people pro- 
fessedly and confessedly separated from political power — 
Protestants, pledged to a total separation from political power, 
and having nothing whatever to do with it — haven't we seen a 
professed Protestantism, in plain opposition to the Sabbath of 
the Lord, joined with politicians and with Rome herself, the 
chiefest political power on earth, and religio-political also? 
Haven't we seen this Protestantism taking council with Ca- 



142 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

tholicism, to get possession of the civil power, in order to 
crush out the existence of God's idea of the Sabbath, even 
the Sabbath of the Lord as He made it and as He has named 
it, and to set up man's, even the Sunday of the papacy, as the 
Catholic Church has appointed it? Then do we not need to 
consider Christ Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our pro- 
fession, in His faithfulness to Sabbath-keeping in such a time 
as that, when we live now in just such a time? The story of 
Jesus was written for us. It was written for the people who 
live in the United States and in the world today. Then let 
us see that we consider His faithfulness, and draw from Him 
that faithfulness that will keep us as faithful to God's ideas of 
the Sabbath, as it kept Him." 

THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST 

On line C of the chart, between 15 and 17, will be seen a 
representation of the crucifixion of Christ. 

After living a life of self-denial, and doing good to all who 
came in contact with Him, the time came when Christ, as Sa- 
viour of the world, must suffer the penalty of sin, which is 
death. In order to answer the demands of the broken law, 
and be a perfect Saviour for all mankind, Christ must suffer 
as man, and bear the sins of the whole human race. As stated 
in Isa. 53:6, the Lord "laid on Him the iniquity of us all;" 
or, as expressed in the margin of this text, He ' ' made the in- 
iquity of us all to meet on Him." It was this overwhelming 
load of sin which caused His soul to shrink from the great or- 
deal through which He must pass. 

As Christ came to this crucial and trying hour, He said, 
"Now is My soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save 
Me from this hour : but for this cause came I unto this hour. ' ' 
John 12 :27. Faltering not in the face of death, He bravely, 
boldly met the hour, and exclaimed, "Father, glorify Thy 
name." And as witness of the acceptance of the willing sacri- 
fice which He here made of Himself, ' ' came there a voice from 
heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it 
again. ' ' 

While the death of Christ was not eternal, because He had 
never transgressed the law of God Himself, yet in taking the 
sins of the whole world upon Him, He felt the anguish which 
the sinner will feel in the final, second death. It was the sense 
of sin, bringing the Father's wrath upon Him as man's sub- 
stitute, that made the cup He drank so bitter, and broke the 
heart of the Son of God. 



THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST 143 

In the garden before His crucifixion, Jesus said to His dis- 
ciples, "Tarry ye here and watch with Me." He went a little 
distance from them, but not beyond their sight or hearing, 
and fell prostrate upon the ground. As the world's guilt was 
laid upon Him, Christ felt that sin, like a broad, deep gulf, was 
separating Him from His Father, and caused His spirit to 
shudder. 

While Christ, the divine Son of God, had taken upon Him- 
self our nature, in order that He might be "in all points 
tempted like as we are," and be subject to all the ills and 
trials that flesh is heir to, yet He was not to use His divine 
power to save Himself from any of these. As man, and as 
man's sin-bearer, He must suffer the consequences of man's 
sin. As man, He must endure the wrath of God "against trans- 
gression. We here present, from the pen of another, a graphic 
portrayal of the sufferings and death of Christ. 

"As Christ felt His unity with the Father broken up, He 
feared that in His human nature He would be unable to endure 
the coming conflict with the power of darkness. ... In 
His agony He clings to the cold ground, as if to prevent Him- 
self from being drawn farther from God. The chilling dew 
of night fell upon His prostrate form, but He heeds it not. 
From His pale lips comes the bitter cry, '0, my Father, if it 
be possible, let this cup pass from Me. ' Yet even now He adds, 
' Nevertheless, not as I will, but as Thou wilt. ' . . . Christ 
might even now refuse to drink the cup apportioned to guilty 
man. It was not yet too late. 

"He might wipe the bloody sweat from His brow, and leave 
man to perish in his iniquity. He might say, let the trans- 
gressor receive the penalty of his sin, and I will go back to 
My Father. Will the Son of Man drink the bitter cup of hu- 
miliation and agony? Will the innocent suffer the consequence 
of the curse of sin to save the guilty? The words fell trem- 
bling from the pale lips of Jesus, '0, My Father, if this cup 
may not pass away from Me, except I drink it, Thy will be 
done. ' 

"Three times has He uttered this prayer. Three times has 
humanity shrunk from the last crowning sacrifice. But now 
the history of the human race comes up before the world's Re- 
deemer. He sees that the transgressors of the law, if left to 
themselves, must perish. He sees the helplessness of man. He 
sees the power of sin. The woes and temptations of a doomed 
world rise before Him. He beholds its impending fate, and His 
decision is made. He will save man at any cost to Himself. 



144 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

He accepts His baptism of blood, that through Him perishing 
millions may gain everlasting life. He has left the courts of 
heaven, where all is purity, happiness, and glory, to save the 
one lost sheep, the one world that has fallen by transgression. 
And He will not turn from His mission. He will become the pro- 
pitiation of a race that has willed to sin. His prayer now 
breathes only submission. Having made the decision, He fell 
dying to the ground, from which He had partially risen. 

"In this awful crisis, when everything was at stake, when 
the mysterious cup trembled in the hand of the sufferer, the 
heavens opened, a light shone forth amid the stormy dark- 
ness of the crisis hour, and the mighty angel who stands in 
God 's presence, . . . came to the side of Christ. The angel 
came not to take the cup from Christ 's hand, but to strengthen 
Him to drink it, with the assurance of the Father's love. He 
came to give power to the divine-human suppliant. He pointed 
Him to the open heavens, telling Him of the souls that would 
be saved as a result of His sufferings. 

"Christ's agony did not cease, but His depression and dis- 
couragement left Him. The storm in no wise abated, but He 
who was its object was strengthened to meet its fury. He came 
forth calm and serene. A heavenly peace rested upon His 
blood-stained face. He had borne that which no human being 
could ever bear; for He had tasted the sufferings of death 
for every man. 

"After Judas had betrayed his master into the hands of 
the hooting mob, the Saviour being bound and closely guarded, 
was led from hall to hall, and from court to court. During His 
trial He underwent every kind of abuse that men and demons 
could invent. 

"Pilate yielded to the demand of the mob . . . [and] 
delivered Jesus up to be crucified. . . • . As soon as Jesus 
was nailed to the cross, it was lifted by strong men, and with 
great violence thrust into the place prepared for it. This 
caused the most intense agony to the Son of God. 

"Upon Christ as our substitute and surety was laid the in- 
iquity of us all. He was counted a transgressor, that He might 
redeem us from the condemnation of the law. The guilt of 
every descendant of Adam was pressing upon His heart. The 
wrath of God against sin, the terrible manifestations of His 
displeasure because of iniquity, filled the soul of His Son with 
consternation. The withdrawal of the divine countenance 
from the Saviour in this hour of supreme anguish pierced His 
heart with a sorrow that can never be fully understood by 



THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST 145 

man. So great was this agony that His physical pain was 
hardly felt. 

"Hope did not present to Him His coming forth from the 
grave a conqueror, or tell Him of the Father's acceptance of 
the sacrifice. He feared that sin was so offensive to God that 
their separation was to be eternal. And in that dreadful hour 
Christ was not to be comforted with the Father's presence. 
'He trod the winepress alone, and of the people there were 
none with Him.' 

"About the ninth hour . . . 'Jesus cried with a loud 
voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani ? ' 'My God, My God, 
why hast Thou forsaken Me ? ' 

"The spotless Son of God hung upon the cross, His flesh lac- 
erated with stripes ; those hands so often reached out in bless- 
ings, nailed to wooden bars ; those feet so tireless on ministries 
of love, spiked to the tree; that royal head pierced by the 
crown of thorns. . . . And all that He endured, — the blood 
drops that flowed from His head, His hands, His feet, the 
agony that racked His frame, and the unutterable anguish that 
filled His soul at the hiding of His F'ather's face, — speaks to 
each child of humanity, declaring, it is for thee that the Son of 
God consented to bear this burden of guilt ; for thee He spoils 
the domain of death, and opens the gate of Paradise. 

"Jesus was acquainted with the character of His Father; 
He understood His justice,. His mercy, and His great love. By 
faith He rested in Him whom it had ever been His joy to obey. 
And as in submission He committed Himself to God, the sense 
of the loss of His Father's favor was withdrawn. By faith, 
Christ was victorious. 

"Christ did not yield up His life till He had accomplished 
the work which He came to do, and with His parting breath 
He exclaimed, 'It is finished.' The battle had been won. 

"To the angels and the unf alien worlds the cry, 'It is fin- 
ished,' had a deep significance. It was for them, as well as 
for us, that the great work of redemption had been accom- 
plished. They, with us, share the fruits of Christ's victory. 

"Not until the death of Christ was the character of Satan 
clearly revealed to the angels or to the unfallen worlds. The 
arch-apostate had so clothed himself with deception that even 
holy beings had not understood his principles. They had not 
clearly seen the nature of his rebellion. 

"Through Jesus, God's mercy was manifested to men; but 
mercy does not set aside justice. The law reveals the attributes 
of God's character, and not a jot or a tittle of it could be 



146 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

changed to meet man in his fallen eondition. God did not 
change His law, but He sacrificed Himself in Christ for man's 
redemption. God's love has been expressed in His justice no 
less than in His' mercy. Justice is the foundation of His throne, 
and the fruit of His love. It has been Satan's purpose to di- 
vorce mercy from truth and justice. He sought to prove that 
the righteousness of God's law is an enemy to peace. But 
Christ shows that in God's plan they are indissolubly joined 
together; the one cannot exist without the other. 'Mercy and 
truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed 
each other. ' 

"By His life and His death, Christ proved that God's jus- 
tice did not destroy His mercy, but that sin could be forgiven, 
and that the law is righteous, and can be perfectly obeyed. 
Satan's charges were refuted. God had given man unmistak- 
able evidence of His love. 

"An earthquake marked the hour when Christ laid down 
His life, and another earthquake witnessed the moment when 
He took it up in triumph. He who had vanquished death and 
the grave came forth from the tomb with the tread of the con- 
queror, amid the reeling of the earth, the flashing of lightning, 
and the roar of thunder." 



CHRIST THE CENTRAL FIGURE 

In England there is a saying that "all roads lead to Lon- 
don." So in the Bible, ALL THE PROPHECIES AND ALL 
GOSPEL TRUTHS CENTER IN CHRIST. 

As Christ was the central figure in the work of creation, 

giving the command from the Father to the Holy Spirit, Who 
was the acting power in the work of creation; and as Christ 
was also the Mediator between God and man in the plan of 
salvation — the gospel — to save the fallen race; and as, at His 
crucifixion, He was hung up between the heavens and the 
earth ; so, on the chart, Christ 's crucifixion and death, in which 
the whole plan of salvation centers, is represented as the Cen- 
tral feature. 

By following line 16, from near the top of the chart, down 
to line U, not far from the bottom, it will be seen that this 
whole space, in some way, represents the crucifixion of Christ. 
On line A, from 15 to 17, is a representation of the crucifixion; 
while below, on line D, between 15 and 17, is a small picture 
showing the crucifixion of Christ to be not only the central 



THE ASCENSION 147 



figure on the chart from left to right, but also that it was the 
central feature of the gospel, or plan of salvation, from the 
days of eternity, and was accomplished here in the fullness of 
time. 

Farther down, on lines H and J, and between lines 15 and 
17, is a diagram, showing the last seven of the 490 years which 
were cut off from the 2300 years. In the middle of that week 
of years stands the cross, with the figures 3 x /2 on either side, 
representing the fact that it was three and one-half years 
from the baptism to the crucifixion, and three and one-half 
years from that time to A. D. 34, when the gospel went to the 
Gentiles. 

Farther down, at the intersection of lines K, L and 16, is a 
diagram showing the crucifixion to have been in the spring of 
A. D. 31. 

On lines 16 and is shown the cross closely connected with 
the time line, at A. D. 31. 

And again, going down to lines U and 16, is shown the 
great red dragon, representing pagan Rome who stood ready 
to devour the man child (Christ) as soon as He should be born. 
This was fulfilled in Herod, a Roman governor, who had all 
the children of Bethlehem, from two years old and under, put 
to death, in order to destroy Christ. 

When Christ yielded up His life on the cross, the work He 
had come to do had been accomplished, and with His parting 
breath He exclaimed, "It is finished." The battle had been 
fought and won. The Saviour's victory meant Satan's defeat. 
This victory was gained for us. Through Christ, therefore, all 
who love truth and right, and turn- to Him for help, shall 
prevail. 



THE ASCENSION 

On line A of the chart, at the intersection of lines 18 and 
19, is an illustration of the ascension of Christ. 

After His resurrection Christ remained forty days on earth 
with His disciples, that they might become familiar with Him 
in His risen and glorified body. He proved conclusively to 
them that He was the same Jesus Who had walked and talked 
with them for three and one-half years before His crucifixion, 
and that now He was a risen, living Saviour, about to return to 
His Father and His original heavenly home, there to remain 
until the work of the gospel was finished, when He would re- 
turn in glory to take His people to Himself. 



148 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Describing our Lord's ascension, the record in Acts 1:9-11 
says: "And when He had spoken these things, while they be- 
held, He was taken up ; and a cloud received Him out of their 
sight. And, while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as 
He went up, behold two men stood by them in white apparel; 
which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up 
into heaven ? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into 
heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go 
into heaven." 

Upon His ascension Christ based His second coming. "If I 
go I will come again, ' ' were His words to His disciples. And as 
His going away was literal, so His coming will also be literal; 
as "a cloud received Him out of sight," so in clouds will He 
come again; as His disciples "looked steadfastly toward 
heaven as He went up," so shall His coming to earth be per- 
sonal and visible; for, says the Revelator, "Behold, He cometh 
with clouds, and every eye shall see Him." Rev. 1:7. 



THE EARLY RAIN, OR DAY OF 
PENTECOST 

At the intersection of lines A and 21, on the chart, is a rep- 
resentation of the disciples of Christ in their room, on the day 
of Pentecost. 

Pentecost was an annual feast of the Jews, celebrated 
seven weeks after the Passover. At this feast they brought the 
first fruits of all the harvest to the temple as an offering, thus 
acknowledging their dependence on the great Giver of all good. 
On this day of divine appointment, the Lord graciously poured 
out His Spirit on the little company of believers whom Christ, 
after His ascension to heaven, had left as His witnesses on 
earth. 

"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were 
all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a 
sound from heaven as of a rushing, mighty wind, and it filled 
all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared 
unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each 
of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and 
began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them 
utterance. ' ' Acts 2 :l-4. 

The Holy Ghost assuming the form of tongues of fire, and 
resting upon the disciples, was an emblem of the gift which 
was bestowed upon them, that of speaking fluently several dif- 



THE EARLY RAIN 149 



ferent languages with which they were unacquainted. And the 
appearance of fire signified the fervent zeal with which they 
would labor, and the power which would attend the word. 

"And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, 
out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised 
abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, be- 
cause that every man heard them speak in his own language. 
And they were all amazed and marveled, saying one to an- 
other, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And 
how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were 
born?" Acts 2:5-8. And Peter, answering, addressed the 
assembly in these words: "Ye men of Judea, and all ye that 
dwell in Jerusalem, . . . this is that which was spoken by 
the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, 
saith God, I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh ; and your 
sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men 
shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. ' ' Acts 
2 :14, 16, 17. 

The following Scriptures show that the pouring out of the 
Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost was the early rain of the 
gospel dispensation: "I will give you the rain of your land in 
his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou 
may est gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. ' ' Deut. 
11:14. "Let us now fear the Lord our God, that giveth rain, 
both the former and the latter, in His season ; He reserveth unto 
us the appointed weeks of the harvest. ' ' Jer. 5 :24. 

These texts indicate that in the beginning of the season, 
when the sowing was done, the Lord caused a heavy rain to 
fall, in order to prepare the soil for the seed, and to give new 
life to all vegetation, causing it to grow and flourish. He calls 
this the "first," or "former rain." When the close of the sea- 
son was nearing, the Lord again caused special heavy rains to 
fall to ripen the grain for the harvest. This is called the latter 
rain. 

The Saviour, in Matthew 13, while comparing the natural 
seedtime and harvest to the work of the gospel in the world, 
says, in verses 37-39, "He that soweth the good seed is the Son 
of Man ; the field is the world ; the good seed are the children of 
the kingdom; . . . the harvest is the end of the world; 
and the reapers are the angels." 

And in Deut. 32:2, are these words, "My doctrine shall 
drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small 
rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass. ' ' 
Hosea 10:12 carries this thought still further, where it says, 



150 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

1 ' Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy ; break up 
the fallow ground : for it is time to seek the Lord, till He come 
and rain righteousness upon you. ' ' ' 

Thus it is conclusive that as there was an early and a lat- 
ter rain in connection with the seedtime and harvest of each 
year, so the gospel dispensation was to have its early and lat- 
ter rain, beginning" with the early church on the day of Pente- 
cost, and ending when the spiritual harvest of souls was about 
to be gathered just before Christ's second coming, or the end 
of the world. 

Foretelling the outpouring of the Spirit in the gospel dis- 
pensation, the prophecy of Joel says: "Be glad then, ye chil- 
dren of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for He hath 
given you the former rain moderately, and He will cause to 
come down for you the rain, the former rain, and THE LAT- 
TER RAIN, in the first month. Joel 2 :23. The outpouring of 
the Spirit at Pentecost was the former rain, and prepared 
hearts for the reception of the gospel seed. Another outpour- 
ing of the Spirit is yet to come, the latter rain, which will 
ripen the gospel grain for the world's great harvest, or the 
end of the world. For this rain we are told to pray. "Ask ye 
of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain; so the Lord 
shall make bright clouds, and give them showers of rain, to 
every one grass in the field. ' ' Zech. 10 :1. 



THE GREAT RED DRAGON 

On lines T and U, and 16 and 17 of the chart, will be seen 
a great red dragon, described in Rev. 12 :3-6, as follows : 

"And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and be- 
hold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, 
and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third 
part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth; 
and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to 
be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. 
And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations 
with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, 
and to His throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, 
where she had a place prepared of God, that they should feed 
her there a thousand two hundred and three score days. ' ' 

Primarily, the dragon represents the devil, or Satan, as 
stated in Rev. 12:9; but in a secondary sense it represents 
pagan Rome, under whom, and through whose power, the Sa- 
viour was put to death. 



THE PAPACY 151 



As the dragon is here used as a symbol, the stars which it 
drew from heaven would also be symbolical. The stars here 
brought to view doubtless had reference to x portion of the 
rulers of the Jewish people. Sixty-three years before the birth 
of the Messiah, Judea became a Roman province. The Jews 
had three classes of rulers — kings, priests, and the members of 
the Sanhedrin. A third of these, the kings, were taken away 
by the Romans. 

The " child" spoken of in this prophecy can refer to none 
other than to Christ, as the specifications relating to this child 
were exactly met in Him. Rome must likewise be the power 
here spoken of as the dragon, as it, in the person of Herod, 
a Roman governor, caused all the children in Bethlehem, from 
two years old and under, to be put to death, with the special 
object in view of putting to death the promised Saviour, as 
soon as He was born. And it is a matter of interest to note 
here the fact that during the second, third, fourth and fifth 
centuries of the Christian era, next to the eagle, the dragon 
was the principal standard of the Roman legions; and that 
dragon was painted red. It seems to be a representative pic- 
ture showing to the world that Rome was the power symbol- 
ized by the red dragon. And the woman, or church, fled into 
-the wilderness, where she was fed a thousand, two hundred 
and threescore symbolic days, or twelve hundred and sixty 
literal years, beginning, as has been shown in other chapters, in 
A. D. 538, and continuing to A. D. 1798. 



THE PAPACY 

At the intersection of lines T, U and 21, on the chart, is a 
beast with seven heads and ten horns, which is described in 
Rev. 13:1-10 as follows : 

"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast 
rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and 
upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of 
blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leop- 
ard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as 
the mouth of a lion; and the dragon gave him his power, and 
his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads, as it 
were, wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed; 
and all the world wondered after the beast. And they wor- 
shipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast : and they 
worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? Who 



152 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

is able to make war with him ? And there was given unto him a 
mouth, speaking great things and blasphemies ; and power was 
given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he 
opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his 
name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And 
it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to 
overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, 
and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth 
shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book 
of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. 
If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into cap- 
tivity shall go into captivity; he that killeth with the sword 
must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the 
faith of the saints. ' ' 

This beast is seen coming up out of the sea. Rev. 17 :15 
says, "The waters which Thou sawest, . . . are peoples, 
and multitudes, and nations and tongues. " Therefore we con- 
elude that the power represented by this beast was to arise in 
a thickly populated territory. 

The dragon of Revelation 12 represented pagan Rome in its 
civil and ecclesiastical forms, with a heathen or pagan religion. 
It was a union of church and state, with the state supreme. 
But when the power represented by the leopard beast comes 
on the stage of action, we find that the religion was changed 
from heathenism to professed Christianity. And while it was 
a union of church and state, it differed from pagan Rome in 
that the church was the ruling power. The papacy reached its 
supremacy, and became the ruling power in the state, in 
A. D. 538. 

There are several features which identify this power with 
the little horn of Dan. 7 :8, 20, 24, 25, as shown in the chapter 
on ' ' The Four Beasts of Daniel Seven. ' ' • 

First, the little horn was a blasphemous power. "He shall 
speak great words against the most High." Dan. 7:25. The 
leopard beast of Rev. 13:6, does the same. "He opened his 
mouth in blasphemy against God." 

Second, the little horn made war with the saints, and pre- 
vailed against them. Dan. 7:21. This beast also makes war 
with the saints, and overcomes them. Rev. 13 :7. 

Third, the little horn had a mouth speaking great things. 
Dan. 7 :8, 20. And of this beast we read, "And there was given 
unto him a mouth speaking- great things and blasphemies." 
Rev. 13 :5. 



THE PAPAL BEAST DIAGRAM 153 

Fourth, the little horn arose on the cessation of the pagan 
form of the Roman empire. The beast of Rev. 13:2 arises at 
the same time; for pagan Rome gave him his power, his seat, 
and great authority. 

Fifth, power was given to the little horn to continue for a 
time, times, and the dividing of time, or 1260 years. Dan 7 :25. 
To this beast also power was given for forty-two months, or 
1260 years. Rev. 13 :5. 

Sixth, at the end of this specified period, the dominion of 
the little horn was to be taken away. Dan. 7 :26. At the end 
of the same period, the leopard beast was himself to be "led 
into captivity." Rev. 13:10. Both these specifications were 
fulfilled in the captivity and exile of the pope, and the tem- 
porary overthrow of the papacy by France, in 1798. 

From this it is evident that the little horn of Dan. 7:25, 
and the leopard beast of Rev. 13 :1-10, both refer to the same 
power. 



THE PAPAL BEAST DIAGRAM 

On lines S, J, and 18 of the chart, is a cone-shaped illustra- 
tion in red, which represents the papacy in all its phases. This 
diagram starts in a small way, about A. D. 100, and gradually 
widens until it reaches a point on line J, to the left of line 20, 
about A. D. 321. It represents the growth of the apostasy 
which began in the early Christian church just before the close 
of the first century, and continued to grow year by year down 
to the beginning of the fourth century. Just at this time Con- 
stantine, a pagan emperor, sent out edicts favoring the Chris- 
tian Catholic Church, and made laws compelling the people to 
keep the pagan Sunday, which more closely united the church 
and state, thereby forming what afterward proved to be the 
papacy, or the beast of Rev. 13 :1-10. 

Paul, speaking of the great apostasy which was to take 
place in the church before Christ's second coming, says: 

"Now we beseech you brethren by the coming of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, that ye 
be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, 
nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ 
is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means; for that 
day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and 
that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who op- 
poseth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or 
that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of 



154 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

God, showing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that 
when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now 
ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his 
time. For th'e mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he 
who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
And then shall that wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall 
consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with 
the brightness of His coming. 2 Thess. 2 :l-8. 

The heathen had a great many ceremonies, among which 
were two that were more sacred, and more universally prac- 
ticed, than any others ; they were known as the greater and the 
lesser mysteries. 

In order to make the Christian worship more like that prac- 
ticed by the heathen, the bishops gave to the Christian ordi- 
nances the name of mysteries. The Lord's supper was made 
the greater mystery, baptism the lesser, and baptism was 
the initiatory rite to the celebration of the Lord's supper. 

"The practice originated in the eastern provinces, and then 
after the time of Hadrian (who first introduced the pagan 
mysteries among the Latins) it spread among the Christians of 
the West. ... A large part, therefore, of the Christian 
observances and institutions, even in this century, had the 
aspect of the pagan mysteries." — Mosheim's "Ecclesiastical 
History," Century 2, part 2, chap. 4, par. 5. 

Paul, addressing the bishops of his own time, in Acts 20 :29, 
30, says, "For I know this, that after my departing shall griev- 
ous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of 
your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things to 
draw away disciples after them." 

The apostles had been dead but a short time when the very 
thing here foretold began to make its appearance. Certain 
bishops, who wanted to increase their influence and obtain 
greater power, began to adopt heathen customs and forms. 
Within twenty years after the close of the first century, the 
true teachings of Christ had been very much perverted. The 
history of the early part of the second century testifies to this 
fact. Says Mosheim: 

"It is certain that to religious worship, both public and pri- 
vate, many rites were added without necessity, and to the 
offense of sober and good men. . . . The Christian doc- 
tors thought it necessary to introduce some external rites, 
which would strike the senses of the people, so that they 
could maintain themselves really to possess all those things 
of which Christians were charged with being destitute, though 
under different forms." 



THE PAPAL BEAST DIAGRAM 155 

_ 9 — ■ — 

As an illustration of the development of this apostasy the 
same historian further says: 

" Before the coming of Christ, all the eastern nations per- 
formed divine worship with their faces turned to that part 
of the heavens where the sun displayed his rising beams. 
This custom was founded upon a general opinion that God, 
whose essence they looked upon to be light, and whom they 
considered as being circumscribed within certain limits, dwelt 
in that part of the firmament from which He sends forth the 
sun, the bright image of His benignity and glory. The Chris- 
tian convert indeed, rejected this gross error (of supposing 
that God dwelt in that part of the firmament) ; but they re- 
tained the ancient and universal custom of worshipping to- 
ward the east, which sprang from it. Nor is this custom 
abolished even in our times, but still prevails in a great num- 
ber of Christian churches." 

Another step in this apostasy was the adoption of the day 
of the sun as a festival day. Sun-worship was practiced to that 
extent in this apostasy, that near the close of the second cen- 
tury the heathen charged the Christians with worshipping the 
sun. Tertullian, a presbyter of the church of Carthage, and 
one of the ' ' church fathers, ' ' who wrote about A. D. 200, con- 
sidered it necessary to make a defense of the practice, which 
he did in an address to the rulers and magistrates of the Ro- 
man Empire, as follows : 

"Others again, certainly with more information and greater 
verisimilitude, believe that the sun is our god. . . . The 
idea no doubt has originated from our being known to turn to 
the east in prayer. But you, many of you, also under pretense 
sometimes of worshipping the heavenly bodies, move your lips 
in the direction of the sunrise. In the same way, ... we 
devote Sunday to rejoicing, from a -far different reason than 
sun-worship." — Tertullian 's "Apology," chap. 16. 
Tertullian further says : 

"Others, with greater regard to manners, it must be con- 
fessed, suppose that the sun is the god of the Christian, be- 
cause it is a well known fact that we pray toward the east, or 
because we make Sunday a day of festivities. ... It is 
you, at all events, who have admitted the sun into the 
calendar of the week : you have selected its day, in preference 
to the preceding day, as the most suitable in the week for 
. . . an entire abstinence from the bath ... or for 
taking rest and banqueting." — "Ad Nationes," book 1, 
chap. 13. 

From the above it will readily be seen that paganism and 
professed Christianity became more and more alike; so that 
by the third century the distinction between them was difficult 
to be discerned. 



156 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

As time went on the bishops began to assume more and 
more authority ; and there was a disposition also on their part 
to confer increased authority on the bishop at Rome, as will 
be seen by the following from Irenaeus in his work, "Against 
Heresies," book 4, chap. 26, book 3, chap. 3. 

"It is incumbent to obey the presbyters who are in the 
church, — those who, as I have shown, possess the succession 
from the apostles; those who, together with the succession 
of the episcopate, have received the certain gift of truth, 
according to the good pleasure of the father. (We do this, 
I say) by indicating that tradition derived from the apostles 
of the very great, the very ancient,, and universally known 
church founded and organized at Rome by the two most 
glorious apostles, Peter and Paul; as also (by pointing out) 
the faith preached to men, which comes down to our time 
by means of the succession of the bishops. For it is a matter 
of necessity that every church should agree with this church, 
on account of its pre-eminent authority." 

DEVELOPMENT OF THE PAPACY 

In the beginning of the fourth century more rapid steps 
were taken toward the development of the papacy. Paganism 
was a union of church and state with the state supreme, while 
the papacy was a union of church and state, with the church 
supreme. 

Nothing comes on the stage of action full grown in this 
world. And as each of the powers that were represented in 
prophecy by the different beasts had their beginning in a small 
way, and as the papal beast of Rev. 13 :1-10 was to be a union 
of church and state, with the church supreme, therefore we 
must look for a gradual development of the principles of a 
union of church and state, where the church is to be the ruling 
head, sometime before the papacy will be seen in all its power. 

The apostasy, without which the papacy could never have 
been developed, has been traced from its very inception to the 
time when the church power was invested largely in one man, 
the bishop of Rome. That which followed was the courtship 
between the church and the state, which finally resulted in a 
complete union between the two, where the church was the 
dominating power. 

Constantine saw a growing power in "the church and there- 
fore thought best to ally himself to it, as stated by the his- 
torian : 

"To Constantine, who had fled from the treacherous cus- 
tody of Galerius, it naturally occurred that if he should ally 
himself to the Christian party, conspicuous advantages must 



THE PAPAL BEAST DIAGRAM 157 

forthwith accrue to him." — Drapers " Intellectual Develop- 
ment of Europe," chap. 9, par. 22. 

EDICT OF MILAN 

In order to gain this power, Constantine and Licinius, after 
their meeting at Milan in March, A. D. 313, jointly issued the 
celebrated Edict of Milan. That edict is as follows : 

"We have resolved among the first things to ordain those 
matters by which reverence and worship to the Deity might 
be exhibited. That is, how we may grant likewise to the 
Christians, and to all, the free choice to follow that mode of 
worship which they may wish. ... And that to each 
one power be granted to devote his mind to that worship 
which he may think adapted to himself. . . . We have 
resolved to communicate most fully to your care and diligence, 
that you may know we have granted liberty and full freedom 
to the Christians, to observe their own mode of worship." — 
Eusebius's "Ecclesiastical History," book 10, chap. 5. 

The date of the Edict of Milan, A. D. 313, will be seen on 
the chart, between lines 18 and 19, extending from line Q to M. 

After continued mutual flatteries, on the part of Constantine 
and the bishops, and advantages gained by both parties, the 
bishops had little difficulty in obtaining from Constantine, who 
was himself a sun worshipper, a law favoring the observance 
of Sunday as a day of rest. Accordingly, March 7, A. D. 321, 
Constantine issued his famous Sunday edict, which reads as 
follows : 

"Constantine, Emperor Augustus, to Helpidius: On the 
venerable day of the sun let the magistrates and people re- 
siding in cities rest, and let all workshops be closed. In the 
country, however, persons engaged in agriculture may freely 
and lawfully continue their pursuits; because it often happens 
that another day is not so suitable for grain-sowing or vine- 
planting; lest by neglecting the proper moment for such 
operations, the bounty of heaven should be lost. Given the 
7th day of March, Crispus and Constantine being consuls each 
of them for the second time." — Shaff's Trans. "History of the 
Christian Church," vol. 3, chap. 75, par. 5, note. 1. 

By referring again to the chart, on line 19, extending from 
Q to M, will be seen the date of the first famous Sunday 
law, 321. 

At the Council of Nice in A. D. 325 another impetus was 
given to the Sunday movement. A decision was made that the 
Roman custom of celebrating Easter on Sunday only should 
be followed throughout the whole empire. The council issued 
a letter to the churches which contained the following passage 
on this subject : 



158 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

"We have also gratifying intelligence to communicate to 
you relative to unity of judgment on the subject of the most 
holy feast of Easter; for this point also has been happily 
settled through your prayers ; so that all the brethren in the 
East who have heretofore kept this festival when the Jews 
did, will henceforth conform to the Komans and to us, and 
to all who from the earliest time have observed our period 
of celebrating Easter." — Socrates' "Eccl. History," book 1, 
chap. 9. 

The date "325, Council of Nice," appears on line 20, from 
Q to M, on the chart. 

Not content with laws enforcing Sunday as a day of rest, 
the church bishops went still farther and at the council of Lao- 
dicea, A. D. 364, the following canon was enacted : 

"Canon 29. Christians shall not Judaize and be idle on 
Saturday, but shall work on that day; but the Lord's day 
they shall especially honor, and, as being Christians, shall, 
if possible, do no work on that day. If, however, they are 
found Judaizing, they shall be shut out from Christ. ' ' — 
Hefele's "History of the Church Councils," Laodicea. 

The date of the Laodicean Council, A. D. 364, is indicated 
on the chart, between lines 20 and 21, extending from Q to M. 

Additional laws still further elevating Sunday were secured 
from later emperors. Says Neander: 

"By a law of the year 386, those older changes effected by 
the emperor Constantine were more rigorously enforced; and, 
in general, civil transactions of every kind on Sunday were 
strictly forbidden. Whoever transgressed was to be con- 
sidered, in fact, as guilty of sacrilege."— "History of the 
Christian Religion and Church," vol. 2, sec. 3, part 2, div. 3, 
par. 4. 

Referring to these laws, Neander says : 

"In this way the Church received help from the State for 
the furtherance of her ends. ' ' — Id. sec. 3, part 2, div. 3, par. 5. 

"This statement," says another, "is correct. Constantine 
did many things to favor the bishops. He gave them money 
and political preference. He made their decisions in disputed 
cases final, as the decision of Jesus Christ. But in nothing that 
he did for them did he give them power over those who did 
not belong to the church, to compel them to act as though they 
did, except in the one thing of the SUNDAY LAW. In the 
Sunday law, power was given to the church to compel those 
who did not belong to the church, and who were not subject 
to the jurisdiction of the church, to obey the commands of 



THE PAPAL BEAST DIAGRAM 159 

the church. In the Sunday law there was given to the church 
control of the civil power, that by it she could compel those 
who did not belong to the church to act as though they did. 
The history of Constantine 's time may be searched through 
and through, and it will be found that in nothing did he give 
the church any such power, except in this one thing — the Sun- 
day law. Neander's statement, is literally correct, that it was 
'in this way the church received help from the state for the 
furtherance of her ends.' " 

The seed of the papacy had been sown, the falling away had 
taken place, and it is now left to find the place where the real 
papal beast was first seen in its infancy. 

On the chart, the papal diagram on line J, between 19 and 
20, shows an abrupt enlarging, or widening at this point. This 
indicates that the edict of Milan, the first famous Sunday law, 
and the Council of Nice, between the years A. D. 313 and 325, 
marked an important epoch in the history of the rise of the 
papal beast. It might properly be called the beginning or 
birth of the papal beast, or the papacy. 

From infancy the papal beast continued to grow year by 
year until it reached the time when three of the ten horns of 
the great and terrible beast of Daniel 7 had been plucked up, 
or three of the ten kingdoms had been conquered to make way 
for the little horn, or the papacy, which took place A. D. 538. 
At this time the papal beast was full grown, the papacy repre- 
sented by the beast having become a world power. This is 
illustrated at line 21 on the chart, and continues from line Q to 
line H. 

Line R, reaching from line 21 to line 24, shows that the 
papacy was a persecuting power for 1260 years, beginning 
A. D. 538, and continuing to A. D. 1798, the period of its su- 
premacy. 

2 Thess. 2:8 says of this power, "And then shall that 
wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the 
spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of 
His coming." The waning of the papacy began with the Ref- 
ormation, in A. D. 1517. This is also pointed out on the chart, 
where is found the word, "Reformation," half way between 
lines 23 and 24, and reaching from line Q to above line J, 
where the papal diagram begins to narrow down, indicating 
this gradual waning of that persecuting power. 



160 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THE TWO HORNED BEASTS, OR 

THE UNITED STATES IN 

PROPHECY 

About the time the papal beast was seen going into cap- 
tivity, in A. D. 1798, at the end of the 1260 year period of 
Dan. 7 :25, and Rev. 13 :5, another beast was introduced upon 
the scene. This beast is described in Rev. 13 :11-17, as follows : 

"And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; 
and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. 
And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, 
and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to wor- 
ship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he 
doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from 
heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them 
that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which 
he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them 
that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the 
beast, which had the wound by the sword and did live. And 
he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that 
the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as 
many as would not worship the image of the beast should be 
killed. And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and 
poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, 
or in their foreheads ; and that no man might buy or sell, save 
he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number 
of his name." 

This beast is pictured on the chart, at the intersection of 
lines T and U, between 26 and 27. 

The following facts show the United States to be the power 
brought to view in this prophecy: It was to be "another 
beast." It could not, therefore, be- the papal beast. It was to 
come up "out of the earth," not out of the sea, which indicates 
that it was to arise in new territory ,— territory not previously 
occupied by "peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and 
tongues." Rev. 17:15. It could not, therefore, arise in Europe, 
Asia, or Africa. Only in the New World of the Western Hem- 
isphere could a nation appear. And we would naturally look 
to the leading power which has arisen here as the one pointed 
out in the prophecy, which is the United States. 

From the standpoint of chronology, the application of the 
symbol to the United States is easy. This power was seen com- 
ing up when the previous one went into captivity, which was 
in 1798. If we look the earth over, what new power do we find 



TWO HORNED BEASTS 161 

coming up in a manner to attract the attention of the world 
at that time? None but the United States government. 

It comes up out of the earth, in contrast with the sea, out 
of which the preceding beast arose; that is, it arose in terri- 
tory previously unknown and unoccupied by any nation. This 
is true of the United States government, but of no other of any 
prominence. 

John saw this two-horned beast "coming up" in 1798. The 
United States was just then "coming up," and has continued 
to come up since that time, in a manner that finds no parallel 
in the history of the world. 

Mitchell speaks of it as "the most striking instance of na- 
tional growth to be found in the history of mankind." Emile 
de Girardin calls it "unparalleled progress." The Dublin Na- 
tion speaks of it as a most "wonderful American empire emerg- 
ing." Can any one doubt what nation has been "coming up" 
during this time ? And the one that has been coming up must 
be the one symbolized by the two4iorned beast of Revelation 13. 

And all this has been accomplished in a quiet and peace- 
ful manner. This nation has not been established by the con- 
quest and overthrow of other nations, as were the nations of 
Europe, but simply by standing up in defense of its right 
against tyranny. The word translated "coming up" in Reve- 
lation 13 :11 means to grow like a plant out of the earth. Re- 
specting the rise of these United States, the Dublin Nation 
says: "No standing army was raised, no national debt sunk, 
no great exertion was made, but there they are. " G. A. Town- 
send, in the "New World Compared with the Old," page 462, 
speaks of "the mystery of our COMING FORTH FROM VA- 
CANCY." Again he says, page 635: "The history of the 
United States was separated by a beneficent Providence far 
from the wild and cruel history of the rest of the continent, 
and like a silent seed we grew into empire." Edward Everett 
spoke of the "peaceful conquest" through which the ban- 
ners of the cross have been borne over mighty regions. Mark 
how wonderfully this harmonizes with the language of the 
prophecy, which says that this power was to come up like a 
plant out of the earth. 

This power had two horns like a lamb. This at once sug- 
gests two things ; the youthfulness of the power, and an inno- 
cent or lamb-like profession embodied in the two great princi- 
ples upon which the government of the United States was 
established, those of tf.vil and religious liberty, which it guar- 
antees to all citizens. America is recognized as the youngest 



162 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

among the great nations of the world. The motto of the 
Egyptian exhibit at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in 
1876 was, "The oldest nation of- the earth to the youngest 
sends greeting." These two features, youth and a lamb-like 
character, are found in the United States government, but in 
no other. 

This beast has no crowns upon its horns, showing that it 
does not represent a kingly or monarchical form of govern- 
ment. The United States is the only notable government an- 
swering to this specification. 

It represents some government where the power is in the 
hands of the people ; for when any acts are performed, it says 
to them (the people that dwell on the earth) that they should 
do it. Eev. 13 :14. It is, in other words, a republic, and this 
applies pre-eminently to the United States government. 

It is also a Protestant government, or at least a non-Cath- 
olic power; for it causes them which occupy its territory to 
worship the first beast, which represents the papacy. If it 
were a Catholic country, there would be no occasion for this. 
The worship would be voluntary, and already in existence. 
But the two-horned beast enforces the worship of a power dis- 
tinct from itself; and that power being the papacy, the two- 
horned beast must symbolize, not a papal, but a Protestant 
country. 

He doeth great wonders, real miracles, making fire come 
down from heaven, and deceives them that dwell on the earth 
by means of these miracles. In Rev. 19:20, the same works 
wrought for the same purpose, are ascribed to the false 
prophet. The two-horned beast and the false prophet there- 
fore represent the same power. But Rev. 16 :13, 14 shows that 
the agency by which the false prophet works his miracles is 
the "spirit of devils" that go forth for this purpose. A won- 
derful work wrought by spirits of devils is therefore another 
feature of this power. And behold it has made its appear- 
ance in modern Spiritualism, which has arisen in this country, 
and from this has spread to all the nations of the earth. The 
full development of this feature doubtless yet remains to be 
seen. 

Considering these facts, that the power represented by the 
two-horned beast must be located in this hemisphere, and be 
just coming into prominence about the year 1798, and be a 
lamb-like power, republican in form of government, and Prot- 
estant in religion, and the place where the wonder workings 
of Spiritualism should first spring forth, and one that should 



THE THREE MESSAGES 1G3 

make such progress as has no parallel in the history of nations, 
can any one for a moment doubt that the United States gov- 
ernment is the one represented? No reason can be given why 
any nation should be noticed in prophecy which will not ap- 
ply in a pre-eminent degree to this nation. 



THE THREE MESSAGES OF 
REV, 14:6-12 

On line X of the chart at the intersection of lines 20, 22 and 
24 are representations of three angels flying in the midst of 
heaven, each having a message to proclaim to the world. 
These messages are described in Rev. 14:6-12, as follows: 
"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having 
the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the 
earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and 
people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory 
to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship 
Him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the foun- 
tains of waters. And there followed another angel, saying, 
Babylon is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations 
drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And the 
third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any 
man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark 
in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the 
wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture 
into the cup of His indignation; and he shall be tormented 
with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and 
in the presence of the Lamb : and the smoke of their torment 
ascendeth up forever and ever: and they have no rest day 
nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoso- 
ever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of 
the saints : here are they that keep the commandments of God, 
and the faith of Jesus." 

We here find a description of what might be called, "The 
three angels' messages." This is quite consistent, inasmuch as 
the last message is distinctly called that of "the third angel." 

It is evident that these angels are symbolical, as they are 
spoken of as preaching the everlasting gospel to the people, 
the literal work of which has been committed only to men. 
It is probably true that in this, as in all previous gospel work, 
angels have a part to act. 



164 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

The fact that the first of these angels says that "the hour 
of His judgment is come," indicates that these messages are 
the closing messages of the gospel to this world just before 
the second coming of Christ. The first message began to be 
heralded in the great advent movement of 1831-1844. 

On line E of the chart, beginning at line 25, is a diagram 
in blue, which represents the first angel's message, gradually 
widening on the right until it joins with the second angel's 
message below and the gospel diagram above. This gradual 
widening is to show how these messages are extending to all 
the world. 

Below, on lines F and H, beginning at line 25, A. D. 1844, 
are two diagrams in blue, representing the second and third 
angels' messages, which also gradually widen as they extend to 
the right and join with the first angel's message, the gospel 
and the law diagram above, and all together close the history of 
the world with the "Word of God." 

No one familiar with the facts can doubt that since 1844 a 
world-wide message, proclaiming the second coming of Christ 
and the great judgment day has been going to the world. 
The long prophetic period of 2300 days, or 2300 literal years, 
of Dan. 8 :14, at the end of which the heavenly sanctuary was 
to be cleansed, and a work of judgment begin, had then reached 
its culmination. 

While the people who first proclaimed this message had 
not received all the light on the work of the sanctuary, — many 
believing that it meant the cleansing of the earth by fire. — yet 
the message was nevertheless of God. The Lord does not let 
all the light of truth shine at one time and upon one people. 
He gives His truth to the world, line upon line, and precept 
upon precept ; so after the churches had rejected this message, 
the Lord sent another message, the second, proclaiming a moral 
fall in these churches ; and after that another, the third angel 's 
message, giving the whole truth on the subject of the sanc- 
tuary, showing that there is a sanctuary in heaven, where 
Christ, our great High Priest, is doing His last mediatorial 
work for this fallen world. 

THE SECOND MESSAGE 

"And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is 
fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations 
drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. ' ' 

This message, following the first, is an evidence that its 
work must be seen immediately after the close of the work 



THE THREE MESSAGES 165 

of the first. The failure on the part of the churches to receive 
the first message was the occasion for the giving of the second. 
Therefore, we may look for some evidence of a lack of spiritual- 
ity in the religious world. The margin of Gen. 10 :10 shows the 
meaning of the word Babel to be Babylon ; and the margin of 
Gen. 11:9 shows that Babylon means confusion, because at 
the tower of Babel the Lord confounded the language of the 
people. Therefore the word Babylon, or confusion, may ap- 
propriately be applied to the diversity of religious beliefs and 
opinions, as represented by the many different denominations. 
By Protestant commentators the word is generally applied to 
the papacy. While this may be true of Babylon, the mother, 
as mentioned in Rev. 17:5, yet the mother has daughters, the 
different denominations that came from the mother church, 
to which the term must also apply. 

That a marked change came over the churches in 1844, is 
shown by the following : 

The Christian Palladium of May 15, 1844, spoke in the fol- 
lowing mournful strain: 

"In every direction we hear the dolorous sound, wafting 
upon every breeze of heaven, chilling as the blast from the 
icebergs of the north, settling like an incubus on the breasts 
of the timid, and drinking up the energies of the weak, that 
lukewarmness, division, anarchy, and desolation are distress- 
ing the borders of Zion. 7> 

In 1844 the Religious Telescope used the following lan- 
guage : 

"We have never witnessed such a general declension of 
religion as at the present. Truly, the church should awake, 
and search into the cause of this affliction; for as an affliction 
every one that loves Zion must view it. When we call to 
mind how 'few and far between' cases of true conversion 
are, and the almost unparalleled impenitence and hardness 
of sinners, we almost involuntarily exclaim, 'Has God for- 
gotten to be gracious? or is the door of mercy closed!' " 

Professor Finney, editor of the Oberlin Evangelist, in Feb- 
ruary, 1844, said: 

"Very extensively, church members are becoming de- 
votees of fashion, joining hands with the ungodly in parties 
of pleasure, in dancing, in festivities, etc. But we need not 
expand this painful subject. Suffice it that the evidence 
thickens and rolls heavily upon us, to show that the churches 
generally are becoming sadly degenerate. They have gone 
very far from the Lord, and He has withdrawn Himself from 
them." 



166 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

THE THIRD MESSAGE 

Commencing with verse 9, the, third message reads as fol- 
lows : 

"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud 
voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and 
receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall 
drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out 
without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall 
be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the 
holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb : and the smoke 
of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever : and they 
have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his 
image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here 
is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the 
commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." 

This message proclaims the most severe threatening of 
divine wrath to be found in all the Bible. Therefore, it is 
reasonable to conclude that the time, place, and work of the 
message can be definitely defined. In fact it would be very 
unreasonable to conclude otherwise. Again, as the third mes- 
sage follows closely upon the second, the work of this message 
must begin very shortly after the second message begins its 
work. 

These messages are not separate and independent the 
one from the other, but unite to form one three-fold message, 
the second joining the first, and the third joining the first 
and second, and all three messages doing their work at the 
same time, and continuing their work until it is finished at 
the second coming of Christ. 

This three-fold message is the last special religious move- 
ment that is to go to the world before, the Lord appears, as 
the next thing John saw was one like the Son of Man coming 
upon a white cloud to reap the harvest of the earth. Rev. 
14:14, 15. 

Following closely to the right of the angels on the chart, 
at the intersection of lines X and 26, is a representation of 
the second coming of Christ in the clouds of heaven with all 
the holy angels. This picture is placed here to impress upon 
the mind of the reader the fact that as soon as the third angel 
closes his work, Christ will be seen coming in the clouds of 
heaven to gather His faithful followers from this sin-cursed 
earth, to take them to the mansions in heaven which He has 
prepared for those that love Him. 



THE THREE MESSAGES 167 

After the time past in 1844, when many were expecting 
the Lord to come, those who had joined in that movement 
were thrown into confusion, and many gave up the message 
entirely; others decided that the reckoning was wrong, and 
began to readjust the prophetic periods, and set a new time 
for the Lord to come. After repeated disappointments many 
gave up looking for the Lord to come, while some have con- 
tinued to set time even to this day. 

A few, after searching closely and candidly for the cause 
of their mistake, found that they were correct, both in the 
beginning and ending of the prophetic periods, and still held 
that the movement was of the Lord. They then began to study 
the subject of the sanctuary more thoroughly, and found that 
there was a sanctuary in heaven, and that its cleansing, accord- 
ing to the type, would consist of the final ministration of 
Christ, our great High Priest, in the second apartment, or most 
holy place. 

Then it was seen that the time had come for the fulfillment 
of Rev. 11:19: "And the temple of God was open in heaven, 
and there was seen in His temple the ark of His testament." 
Here then was seen the ark in heaven, the great antitype of 
the ark that was in the temple on earth, which contained the 
law of God. It was then understood that this law in the temple 
in heaven was the great original, of which the law on tables of 
stone in the earthly ark was but a transcript, or copy. Conse- 
quently it was evident that the fourth or Sabbath command- 
ment must read now the same as it always had read. 

This led to the study of the Sabbath question, and after a 
careful examination of that subject, if was found that a large 
share of the religious world was not keeping the right day, 
or the Sabbath according to the commandment, but another 
day, the first day of the week, or Sunday, in place of the 
seventh. It was also learned that the Sunday sabbath was 
an institution of the power represented by the beast of Rev. 
13:1-10. Knowing these facts, the people who had learned 
them felt it their duty, not only to bring about a reform on 
the Sabbath question, but to warn the world against worship- 
ping the beast and his image, as obedience is the highest form 
of worship ; therefore by obeying this beast power in the 
keeping of its sabbath instead of the Sabbath of the Lord, 
they would be worshipping the beast in place of God. 

Another evidence of the truthfulness of the position here 
taken, is found in the statement made by the prophet, following 
this closing gospel message. Speaking of its results he says: 



168 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

"Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep 
the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Rev. 
14:12. 

As the keeping of the seventh day Sabbath, according to 
the commandment, is a sign, mark, or seal, of the worship 
of the true God, who created the heavens and the earth, so will 
the keeping of Sunday, the first day of the week, as the Sab- 
bath, be a sign, mark, or seal of the beast power that claims 
to have changed the law of God by changing the Sabbath 
from the seventh to the first day of the week. See chapter on 
the "Seal of God." 



SABBATH REFORM IN THE 
LAST DAYS 

Once more reference is made to the words, "Sabbath Re- 
form, ' ' this time to ' ' Sabbath Reform in the Last Days. ' ' See 
chart, line B, between 23 and 26. 

Here the attention of the reader is called to the last great 
Sabbath reform, just prior to the second coming of Christ. 

The first Sabbath reform mentioned on the chart, was that 
which took place when the Lord delivered the Children of 
Israel out of Egyptian bondage. This is represented on the 
chart under the words, "Sabbath Reform at Sinai." 

The second was at the time of the first advent of Christ, 
when the Pharisees and doctors of the law had lost sight of 
the true meaning and purpose of the Sabbath. By their tra- 
ditions and exactions, they had so completely hidden it from 
their own minds and the minds of the people, that when Christ, 
the Lord of the Sabbath, came and was keeping it in God's own 
way, they were ready to reject and persecute Him, even unto 
death, because He did not keep it in harmony with their erro- 
neous ideas. 

Ever since the fall of man, Satan has had one main object 
in view, and that is in some way to hide the Sabbath and 
its true meaning from men. He knows that the fourth or 
Sabbath commandment contains the seal of God, and is the 
only one of the ten that tells who the true God is; and that, 
therefore, if he can only get the people to lose sight of it, he 
can get them to worship any kind of a god he might suggest 
to them. 

Satan first placed the people of God in Egyptian bondage 
where it was exceedingly difficult for them to keep the Sab- 



THE IMAGE TO THE BEAST 169 

bath. Next he influenced the Jews to so cover up the Sabbath 
with their traditions that the true keeping of it was almost 
entirely lost to sight. And last, but not least, he influenced 
the early Christians in the first few centuries of the Christian 
era, and so entangled them with heathenism and sun worship, 
that under the name of the papacy, they attempted to change 
the law of God, so that Sunday, the first day of the week, was 
put in the place of the Sabbath, or seventh day. 

The last Sabbath reform is the most important of all ; first, 
because the sin of attempting to change the law of God, a 
thing the papacy did attempt to do, is one of the most per- 
verse and heaven-daring sins that men could commit ; and, sec- 
ond, because the most fearful punishment threatened in all 
the Bible is that pronounced upon those who worship this 
papal power, and keep his mark, the Sunday-sabbath institu- 
tion, instead of the Sabbath of the Lord. The message calling 
for this Sabbath reform, is found in Rev. 14 :6-10, and is to be 
the closing message of the gospel, immediately preceding the 
second coming of Christ and the close of this world's history. 



THE IMAGE TO THE BEAST 

■ According to Rev. 13 :14, the two-horned beast — the United 
States — was to make an image to the beast, "which had the 
wound by the sword and did live." The wounded beast 
represents the papacy which went into captivity in A. D. 
1798, as described in previous chapters. 

On line L, beginning at line 24, is a diagram in blue, repre- 
senting the United States. This diagram, starting with a nar- 
row point near line 24, A. D. 1798, — see lines Q and 24, — gradu- 
aJly widens until it reaches lines M and 27. 

In the territory of the United States, on line L, beginning at 
the right of line 25, is another diagram in red, which represents 
the image to the beast in all its phases. This diagram in red, 
starting with a small point at line 25, gradually widens until 
it largely covers the United States diagram, then extending 
above, it joins with a larger diagram in red, described as "the 
beast and his image," between lines I and M, and 26 and 27. 

In order to recognize the image to the beast when it ap- 
pears on the stage of action, we need to go back and study 
the history of the first beast, to which the two-horned beast was 
to make an image. 



170 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

As we found in the study of the first beast, the papacy, 
that the apostasy, without which the papacy could never have 
existed, was the first thing to be -considered, so it is in the 
formation of the image to the beast. 

The first steps which led to the formation of the beast, or 
papacy, was the turning away of the church from the true 
principles of Christ to the mysteries and false modes of worship 
practised by the heathen, in order to make converts; and 
its seeking the power of the state, instead of the power of God, 
to carry on its work of Christianizing the people. This same 
condition of things among* professed Christians in the United 
States today, will lead to the formation of the image to the 
beast. 

In the chapter on the ' ' Three Angels ' Messages, ' ' are given 
some statements from prominent ministers of different denomi- 
nations, showing the decline in religion among the popular 
churches, following the proclamation of Christ's soon coming, 
or the first angel's message of Rev. 14:6, 7, which went to 
the world in 1831-1844. 

As in the formation of the beast, so now, the less pro- 
fessed Christians have of the power of the Holy Spirit, the 
more they seek the power of the state to aid them in their 
work. Since 1844 the National Reform Association, the Amer- 
ican Sabbath Union, the Federal Council of the churches, and 
other similar organizations, have been established in this coun- 
try with the special object in view of getting the state to aid 
them in their church work. 

This is represented on the chart, in the diagram of red, on 
line L, beginning with a small point to the right of line 25. 
See date 1844 on Time Line. Note also the word "Apostasy," 
in 1863, between lines 25 and 26, extending up from line Q to 
above line N, then follow the dotted line to line L. From this 
point the diagram gradually widens as it extends to the right, 
until it covers the whole of the United States diagram at 
line 27. 

The diagram, beginning in a small way, and gradually en- 
larging as it extends to the right, shows how the image to the 
beast first began by a falling away, and, little by little, grows 
into a more extended apostasy, until it reaches the time when 
it becomes a world power, and performs the work the prophet 
saw that it would do. 

The object of the National Reform Association and other 
like organizations, is here briefly presented. 



THE IMAGE TO THE BEAST 171 

Representatives from eleven different denominations met in 
a convention at Xenia, Ohio, Feb. 3, 1863, "for prayer and 
Christian conference, with special reference to the state of 
the country." Out of this convention grew what is known 
as the "National Reform Association," the chief object of 
which, from the first, has been to secure "a religious amend- 
ment to the Constitution of the United States." From year 
to year the association has kept holding its conventions, scat- 
tering its literature, disseminating its views, and seeking to 
overturn one of the great fundamental principles upon which 
the national government was founded, that of religious 
freedom, or the separation of church and state. 

In a paper, presented by Mr. John Alexander, at the above 
named convention, the following statement was made : 

"We regard the neglect of God and His law, by omitting 
all acknowledgment of them in our Constitution, as the 
crowning, original sin of the nation. . . . Therefore the 
most important step remains yet to be taken, — to amend the 
Constitution so as to acknowledge God and the authority of 
His law; and the object of this 'paper is to suggest to this 
convention the propriety of considering this subject, and of 
preparing such an amendment to the Constitution as they 
may think proper to propose in accordance with its pro- 
visions." 

Article II of the Constitution of the National Reform As- 
sociation reads as follows: 

"The object of this society shall be to maintain existing 
Christian features in the American government, to promote 
needed reforms in the action of the government touching the 
Sabbath, the institution of the family, the religious element 
in education, the oath, and public morality as effected by the 
liquor traffic and other kindred evils; and to secure such an 
amendment to the Constitution of the United States as will 
declare the nation's allegiance to Jesus Christ, and its ac- 
ceptance of the moral laws of the Christian religion, and so 
indicate that this is a Christian nation, and place all the 
Christian laws, institutions and usages of our government on 
an undeniable legal basis in the fundamental law of the land. ' ' 

Should these principles be adopted as a legal basis of the 
government, it is evident that none but professed Christians 
could hold any office or place of trust under the government, 

and that as a consequence, "every political hack, every dema- 
gogue, every unprincipled politician in the United States 
would become a professed Christian; and every popular re- 
ligious body would be joined by a horde of hypocrites." 
Instead of trembling at such a prospect, the National Reform- 



172 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

ers see no danger in their movement, but consider it thoroughly 
sound and Christian. 

At the annual convention of the National W. C. T. U. for 
1887, held in Nashville, Tenn., the president, in her annual 
address, officially reported in the Union Signal of December 1, 
declared the purpose of the Union as follows : 

"The "Woman's Christian Temperance Union, local, State, 
national, and world-wide, has one vital, organic thought, one 
all-absorbing purpose, one undying enthusiasm, and that is 
that Christ shall be this world's king; yea, verily, this world's 
king in its realm of cause and effect, — king of its courts, its 
camps, its commerce, — king of its colleges and cloisters, — 
king of its customs and Constitutions. . . . The Kingdom 
of Christ must enter the realm of law through the gateway 
of politics." 

All that the papacy ever wanted was that legislation, 
State, national, and municipal, should be framed in harmony 
with the ideas of the church. That is all she wants now. In 
his Encyclical of 1885, Pope Leo XIII, said: 

"We exhort all Catholics who would devote careful atten- 
tion to public matters, to take an active part in all municipal 
affairs and elections, and to further the principles of the 
church in all public services, meetings, and gatherings. All 
Catholics must make themselves felt as active elements in 
daily political life in the countries where they live. They 
must penetrate wherever possible in the administration of 
civil affairs; must constantly exert their utmost vigilance 
and energy to prevent the usages of liberty from going beyond 
the limits fixed by God's law. All Catholics should do all in 
their power to cause the Constitution of States, and legis- 
lation, to be modeled to the principles of the true church. 
All Catholic writers and journalists should never lose for 
an instant from view, the above prescriptions. All Catholics 
should redouble their submission to authority, and unite 
their whole heart, soul and body and mind, in the defense of 
the church. ' ' 

The Christian Union of September 8, 1887, said: 

"The political aim of Christianity is to bring forth a time 
in which Christianity shall control the caucus, religion shall 
control politics, the politicians shall be saints, and the polls 
shall be holy ground." 

The object of the American Sabbath Union, organized in 
New York City, Nov. 13, 1888, is to "preserve the Christian 
Sabbath as a day of rest and worship" by law. Immediately 
after its organization, efforts were made by it to secure a 
national Sunday law. 



THE IMAGE TO THE BEAST 173 

At the Chautauqua (N. Y.) Assembly in August, 1889, 
Col. Elliot F. Shepard, president of the American Sabbath 
Union, said: 

"Governments do not derive their just powers from the 
consent of the governed. God is the only law-giver." 

These quotations are sufficient to demonstrate that these 
religio-political organizations are working to change the 
United States government into a new theocracy; in other 
words, to make an image to the papacy. 

In the Sunday Mail Report adopted by the United States 
in 1829, occurred the following truthful observations: 

"Among all the religious persecutions with which almost 
every page of modern history is stained, no victim ever suf- 
fered but for the violation of what government denominated 
the law of God. To prevent a similar train of evils in this 
country, the Constitution has wisely withheld from our govern- 
ment the power of denning the divine law. It is a right re- 
served to each citizen; and while he respects the rights of 
others, he cannot be held amenable to any human tribunal for 
his conclusions. ' ' 

In order to secure a national Sunday law, co-operation 
of the Catholic Church was sought by this Union, as will be 
seen by the following letter written by Cardinal Gibbons in 
reply to a letter which he had received from the Secretary of 
the Union, Rev. W. F. Crafts: 

"Baltimore, Dec. 4, 1888. 
"Rev. Dear Sir: — I have to acknowledge your esteemed 
favor of the 1st inst., in reference to the proposed passage 
of a law by Congress 'against Sunday work in the govern- 
ment's mail and military service,' etc. I am most happy to 
add my name to those of the millions of others who are 
laudably contending against the violation of the Christian 
Sabbath by unnecessary labor, and who are endeavoring to 
promote its decent and proper observance by legitimate 
legislation. Your obedient servant in Christ, 

(Signed) James Cardinal Gibbons, 

Archbishop of Baltimore." 

As further evidence that the overtures of the Protestants 
for assistance from the Catholic Church for securing laws for 
the compulsory observance of Sunday met with favorable re- 
sponses on the part of the latter, the following, from a paper 
read at the "Congress of Catholic Laymen of the United 
States," held in Baltimore, Nov. 12, 1889, may be cited: 

"What we should seek is an en rapport with the Protes- 
tant Christians who desire to keep Sunday holy. . . . We 
can bring the Protestant masses over to the reverent modera- 
tion of the Catholic Sunday. ' ' 



174 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

And the platform which was adopted as a result of the 
discussions in the congress, declared upon this point as fol- 
lows : 

' ' There are many Christian issues to which Catholics could 
come together with non-Catholics, and shape civil legislation 
for the public weal. In spite of rebuff and injustice and 
overlooking zealotry, we should seek alliance with non- 
Catholics for proper Sunday observance. Without going over 
to the Judaic Sabbath, we can bring the masses over to 
the moderation of the Christian Sunday." 

"Thus," says another, "are the leaders of professed 
Protestantism in the United States joining heart and hand 
with the papacy, with the sole purpose of creating in this gov- 
ernment an order of things identical with that which created 
the papacy at the first. It is most appropriate, therefore, that 
the bond of union which united them in the evil work, should 
be the very thing — the day of the sun — by means of which 
the papacy secured control of the civil power to compel those 
who did not belong to the church to submit to the dictates 
of the church, and to act as though they did belong to it. 
It was by means of Sunday laws that the church secured con- 
trol of the civil power for the furtherance of her ends when 
the papacy was made. It is appropriate that the same identical 
means should be employed by an apostate Protestantism to 
secure control of the civil power for the furtherance of her 
ends, and to compel those who do not belong to the church to 
submit to the dictates of the church, and to act as those do 
who belong to the church. And as that evil intrigue back there 
made the papacy, so will this same thing here make the living 
image of the papacy. Two things that are so alike in the 
making will as surely be as much alike when they are made." 

THE SUPREME COURT DECISION OF 1892 

"On the twenty-ninth day of February, 1892, the Supreme 
Court of the United States rendered a decision, and on the 
nineteenth of July, 1892, the Congress of the United States 
passed certain acts, which singly and together vitally concern 
every person in the United States first, and through these, 
every person in the world. 

"Trinity corporation in New York City hired a preacher in 
England to come over here and preach for. them. They con- 
tracted with him before he came. He was an alien, and came 
over under contract, to perform service for that church. The 
United States District Attorney entered suit against the church . 
for violating this law. The United States Circuit Court de- 



THE IMAGE TO THE BEAST 175 

cided that the church was guilty, and rendered judgment 
accordingly. An appeal was taken to the Supreme Court of 
the United States, upon writ of error. 

"The Supreme Court reversed the decision, first upon a 
well-established principle that 'the intent of the lawmaker 
is the law.' The court quoted directly from the reports of the 
Senate Committee and the House Committee who had the bill 
in charge when it was put through Congress; and these both 
said in express terms that the term 'laborer,' or 'labor or 
service, ' used in the statute, was intended to mean only manual 
labor or service, and not professional service of any kind. 
Therefore, that being the intent, and the only intent of the 
law, and the intent of the lawmaker being the law, the Supreme 
Court reversed the decision of the lower court, and said that 
the act complained of was not a violation of the law. 

"So far as this goes, the decision is perfectly proper; and 
it needed to have gone no further, as the only point in the 
case was here fully decided. 

"But in the closing paragraphs of the decision, there is 
brought in and made an essential part of the decision, a mass 
of matter not only totally irrelevant to the case, but wholly 
beyond the rightful jurisdiction or the proper cognizance of 
the court. " 

After citing the "form of oath universally prevailing, the 
custom of opening sessions of all deliberative bodies, and most 
conventions with prayer, the prefatory words of all wills, 'In 
the name of God, Amen,' the laws respecting the observance 
of the Sabbath with the general cessation of all secular busi- 
ness, and the closing of courts, legislatures, and other similar 
public assemblies on that day," the court said: 

"These, and many other matters which might be noticed, 
add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic 
utterances that THIS IS A CHRISTIAN NATION." 

How this declaration on the part of the United States Su- 
preme Court was regarded by the National Reformers and 
other advocates of a union of church and state in this coun- 
try, may be seen from the following : In the Christian States- 
man of June 25, 1892, one of the secretaries of the association 
said: 

"Is not this the time to remember that the United States 
Supreme Court has officially declared (in a document that 
reads as if largely gathered from the National Reform Man- 
ual) that this is a Christian nation?" 



176 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

The Pearl of Days, the official organ of the American 
Sabbath Union, May 7, 1892, says that this decision ' ' establishes 
clearly the fact that our government is Christian, ' ' and adds : 

"This decision is vital to the Sunday question in all its 
aspects, and places that question among the most important 
issues now before the American people. . . . And this im- 
portant decision rests upon the fundamental principle that 
religion is imbedded in the organic structure of the American 
Government — a religion that recognizes, and is bound to 
maintain Sunday as a day for rest and worship." 

And one of the first uses made of this decision was when, 
in April, 1892, the president of the American Sabbath Union 
took it and recited its -'argument "before committees of the 
United States Senate and House of Representatives, and de- 
manded the closing of the World's Fair on Sunday, by Con- 
gress, "because this is a Christian nation." 

Through the churches and these religio-political organiza- 
tions, great pressure was brought to bear upon Congress in 
1892, to secure the Sunday legislation just referred to. This is 
proved by the clearest evidences. In the discussion of the 
question in Congress it was treated as a religious question and 
nothing else ; and this, too, because the churches demanded it. 
So entirely was this so, in a communication to the New York 
Independent, of July 28, 1892, the chaplain of the United States 
Senate, speaking of the discussion in that body said: 

"During this debate you might have imagined yourself in 
a general council or assembly or synod or conference, so 
pronounced was one senator after another." 

Senator Hawley said: 

"Everybody knows what the foundation is. It is founded 
in religious belief." 

And Senator Peffer said of it : 

"Today we are engaged in a -theological discussion con- 
cerning the observance of the first day of the week." 

It was the same way in the House. A dispatch from Wash- 
ington to the Chicago Daily Post, April 9, 1892, gave the fol- 
lowing from an interview with a member of the House Com- 
mittee on the World's Fair: 

"The reason we shall vote for it is, I will confess to you, 
a fear that, unless we do so, the church folks will get together 
and knife us at the polls ; and, — and well you know we all want 
to come back, and we can't afford to take any risks. 

"Do you think it will pass the House? 

"Yes; and the Senate too. We are all in the same boat. 
I am sorry for those in charge of the Fair; but self-preserva- 
tion is the first law of nature, and that is all there is about it. ' ' 

Ever since the introduction of the Blair national Sunday 



THE IMAGE TO THE BEAST 177 

rest bill, in 1888, constant efforts have been made to secure 
national Sunday legislation, and unite church and state in the 
United States. 

From what has been learned thus far in this chapter, it is 
evident that the apostasy of the church in seeking the power of 
the state, instead of the power of God, to advance Christianity, 
has already begun. 

The Supreme Court decision of February 29, 1892, and the 
act of Congress in legislating upon the fourth or Sabbath Com- 
mandment in the same year, were counterparts of the Edict of 
Milan and the first Sunday law, of A. D. 313 and 321. 

As these last named edicts gave birth to the papacy (the 
beast), so these very important acts of the judicial and legis- 
lative branches of our government laid the foundation for the 
formation of the image to the beast. And as the beast back 
there grew to be a world power, so one may expect the image 
to the beast will likewise develop and become a dominating 
factor in the great world issues, and become a persecuting 
power. 

THE MARK OF THE BEAST 

What is the mark of the beast? It is not, of course, a 
literal mark. Prophecy would not couple together a symbolic 
beast, and a literal mark of that beast. Marks were sometimes 
used by generals and masters in ancient times to distinguish 
their followers and servants. The mark of the beast must be 
some institution of the beast which will distinguish its follow- 
ers. But Ave show ourselves followers or servants of any power 
only by obeying its authority; and authority is always mani- 
fested through law. 

From what other company are the followers of the beast 
distinguished? From the followers of God; inasmuch as the 
warning which goes forth against the worship of the beast 
and the reception of his mark, is designed to keep men loyal 
to the requirement of heaven. "Here are they," says the third 
message, "which keep the commandments of God." But we 
can show ourselves followers of God only by keeping His law. 
Therefore the issue in reference to which the third message 
warns us, is a conflict between the law of God and the law of 
this beast power, by our action toward which we are to show 
ourselves either the worshippers of the beast or the followers 
of God. 

This accords with the prophecies which reveal the leading 
characteristic of this apostate power, in connection with which 
we must, of course, look for the mark of that power. Daniel, 



178 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

describing it under the symbol of the little horn of the fourth 
beast of his seventh chapter, says, "He shall think to change 
times and laws." Dan. 7:25. The Septuagint, German, and 
Danish translations read, "the law." Here is meant unques- 
tionably the law of God. Among the works of this power we 
shall find therefore an attempt to change the law of God. 
Paul, in 2 Thessalonians 2, speaks of this power as "the man 
of sin," the "son. of perdition," who would exalt himself above 
all that is called God, or that is worshipped. How could he 
do this? — Only by promulgating a law which conflicts with 
the law of God. In doing this he does not show himself pro- 
fessedly opposed to God, for, as Paul says, he would sit in the 
temple of God, and show himself that he is God, or set himself 
as God. He must, therefore, take hold of the law of God, and 
change it, and demand obedience to the change, as if God was 
the author of this change. And this is just what Daniel said he 
would think to do ; that is, to change the law of God. 

The mark of the beast therefore is simply this change 
which this power has attempted to make in the law of God. It 
consists in the change of the fourth commandment, wherein 
it has put the first day of the week in place of the seventh. 

In a letter dated January 11, 1892, from Father Enright, a 
Catholic priest, who had charge of the Redemptorist College, 
Kansas City, Mo., this statement is made: "I have repeatedly 
offered $1,000 to anyone who can prove to me from the Bible 
alone that I am bound to keep Sunday holy. There is no such 
law in the Bible. It is a law of the holy Catholic Church alone. 
The Bible says, ' Remember that thou keep holy the Sabbath 
day/ The Catholic Church says: 'NO! BY 'MY DIVINE 
POWER I ABOLISH THE SABBATH DAY, AND COM- 
MAND YOU TO KEEP HOLY THE FIRST DAY OF THE 
WEEK/ AND, LO! THE ENTIRE CIVILIZED WORLD 
BOWS DOWN IN REVERENT OBEDIENCE to the command 
of the holy Catholic Church." T. Enright, Css. R. 

A letter was written to Archbishop Ryan, of Philadelphia, 
stating Father Enright 's position, and the following reply was 
received : " Of course Father Enright is correct. There is not 
a word in the New Testament about Christ's changing the day. 
On the contrary, He always observed the Sabbath, the seventh 
day. . . . The church alone is authority for the transfer 
from Saturday to Sunday. "Ign. F. Hoostman, Chancellor." 

See quotations from Catholic Catechisms, pages 107, 108. 

When the United States government enacts laws for the 
compulsory observance of Sunday, it will be nothing else than 
the enforcing of the mark of the beast. That the papacy is 






SUNDAY, ANCIENT AND MODERN 179 

symbolized by the little horn of Daniel 7, is beyond question. 
The prophecy said that it should think to change the law of 
God. This it frankly acknowledges having done. In the final 
issue, those who, with the light before them, and the issue 
pressed upon them, deliberately choose to keep the institution 
of the beast instead of the commandment of God, will worship 
the beast and receive his mark. 

This is the last great conflict into which the people of God 
are to be brought. They are finally seen victorious on Mount 
Zion with the Lamb, and this two-horned beast, or false 
prophet, in company with the beast, is cast alive into the lake 
of fire, at the great day. 



SUNDAY, ANCIENT AND MODERN 

On line N of the chart, beginning at line 7, is a diagram in 
red, which traces the history of Sunday from the time when 
the children of Israel were in bondage in Egypt, down through 
to the present. Sunday takes its -name from the sun, as that 
day was dedicated to it as a day of worship by the heathen. 
Sun worship has been the most widely practiced form of 
idolatry in the history of man, while with it nearly always have 
been connected pollutions of the lowest kind. 

In a work entitled "Two Republics," pages 183, 191-197, 
the author, writing on sun worship, says : 

"In the history of mankind no form of idolatry has been 
more widely practiced than that of the worship of the sun. 
It may well be described as universal; for there is scarcely a 
nation in which the worship of the sun in some form, has 
not found a place. In Egypt, the oldest nation of historic 
times, under the names of Ra and Osiris, with half a dozen 
other forms; in Phenicia and the land of Canaan, under the 
names of Baal. . . . Molock and other forms; in Syria, 
Tammuz and Elagabalus; among the Moabites, under the 
name of Baal-peor; among the Babylonians and Assyrians, 
under the names of Bel and Shamas; in Greece and Rome, 
under Apollo, Bacchas, and Hercules; — in all these places 
and under all these forms, the sun was worshipped by all 
these people." 

"In a most comprehensive way the Lord taught His 
people to shun every indication of the worship of the sun. 
. . . The devotees of the sun worshipped with their faces 
toward the east. When God established His worship with 
the children of Israel in the very midst of the sun worshipping 
nations round about, at first a sanctuary was built and after- 
wards a temple, where He dwelt by the glory of His presence. 
To the door of this sanctuary every form of sacrifice was to 



180 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

be brought, and there they were to worship. And the door 
of that sanctuary (the temple also) was always toward the 
east, in order that all who would sacrifice to Jehovah and 
worship Him, would in so doing, turn their backs upon the 
sun and its worship; and that whoever joined in the wor- 
ship of the sun, had first to turn his back upon Jehovah." 

"By the time that Zedekiah reigned there was again a 
serious lapse, not only into certain forms of sun worship, but 
into the open worship of the literal sun. Ezekiel was among 
the captives in Babylonia, and by the Spirit of God he was 
taken in a vision to Jerusalem, and was caused to see the 
abominations that were being practiced there." 

After seeing some of these abominations, he was told to turn 
yet again, and he should see greater abominations than this. 
"And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house, 
and behold at the door of the temple of the Lord, between 
the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, 
with their backs toward the Temple of the Lord, and their 
faces toward the east, and they worshipped the sun toward 
the east." Eze. 8:16. 

We now come down to the time of Rome. "To Sal Deus 
invietus — the sun, the unconquerable god, — were attributed the 
world-wide conquest of the Roman power. The greatest and 
most magnificent temple that ever was built on earth, except 
only that built by Solomon, was erected by Antonius Pius, 
Emperor of Rome, at Baalbek, in honor of the visible shining 
sun." 

By following down the Sunday diagram on line N, from 
line 7 to the left of line 18, it will be seen that Sunday was 
nothing but a low, degraded, heathen day. Prom between 
lines 17 and 18, the Sunday diagram rises from line N to line K, 
at the right of line 18. The rising at this point is to show that 
in the early part of the second century, the Christians began 
to exalt Sunday by first adopting the heathen customs of wor- 
shipping the sun toward the east, and second, by the keeping of 
Sunday as a holy day. Then followed Constantine's Sunday 
law of A. D. 321, and the canon enacted at the council of 
Laodicea, A. D. 364, compelling those that kept the true seventh 
day Sabbath to work on that day, and to keep the Sunday 
instead. And thus Sunday was brought up from a low, de- 
graded heathen day to the level of the true Sabbath, as illus- 
trated upon the chart. 

Following down the Sunday diagram on line K, from line 
19 to 26, are the names, "American Sabbath," and "The Civil 
Rest day." These names have been applied to Sunday, the 



MOHAMMEDANIANS OR TURKS 181 

first day of the week, by such organizations as the "American 
Sabbath Union," and the "National Reform Association." 

At the intersection of lines K and 26, the Sunday diagram 
begins gradually to widen to the right, showing the impetus 
that was given to the Sunday movement by the United States 
Supreme Court decision in 1892; and, following to the right, 
this diagram runs into, and becomes a part of, the diagram 
designated "The Beast and His Image." This is to show 
that Sunday is the bond of union that joins together Catholi- 
cism and Protestantism, or the beast and his image, described 
in the thirteenth and fourteenth chapters of Revelation. These 
together close the history of the world with "MAN'S WORD," 
while at the same time, in contradistinction, the three angel's 
messages above, close the history of the world with "GOD'S 
WORD." 

This bond of union on the Sunday line, is clearly set forth 
in the latter part of the chapter on the "Image to the Beast," 
in this work. 



MOHAMMEDANISM, OR THE 
SARACENS AND TURKS 

By referring to the chart, on lines T and U, between 22 
and 25, will be seen pictures of two horses with their riders, 
and underneath them the names, "Saracens and Turks." At 
the left of line 22, crossing line Q, is the date A. D. 622. Just 
above this, and extending up, nearly to line L, is the word, 
"Mohammedanism." Again, directly above, on line I, and be- 
tween lines 21 and 22, is the beginning of the diagram, 
"Mohammedan Theocracy," in red, which extends to the right 
to a point two-thirds of the way between lines 26 and 27. 

These illustrations represent the prophecies concerning the 
Turkish nations, referred to in the following Scripture which 
introduces the seven trumpets of Revelation, chapters 8-11 : 
"And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven 
unto the earth : and to him was given the key to the bottomless 
pit." Rev. 9:1. 

Speaking of this trumpet, Mr. Alexander Keith says : 

"There is scarcely so uniform an agreement among in- 
terpreters concerning any other part of the Apocalypse as 
respecting the application of the fifth and sixth trumpets, or 
the first and second woes to the Saracens and Turks. It is 
so obvious that it can scarcely be misunderstood. Instead of 



182 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

a verse or two designating each, the whole of the ninth chapter 
of the Revelation, in equal portions, is occupied with a de- 
scription of both. 

' ' The Roman empire declined, as it arose, by conquest : but 
the Saracens and the Turks were the instruments by which a 
false religion became the scourge of an apostate church; and 
hence, instead of the fifth and sixth trumpets, like the former, 
being designated by that name alone, they are called woes." 

Trumpets having long been used as heralds of war and 
revolution, is probably why they are used in prophecy to repre- 
sent political changes. 

' ' The prophet now turns, ' ' says another writer, ' ' from 
those agencies which were employed to scourge Rome, and 
break it up into political divisions, to those agencies which were 
employed to scourge it as an ecclesiastical power after its 
change from paganism to the papacy. 

"The first eleven verses of Revelation are used in describ- 
ing the fifth trumpet. A star is first seen falling from heaven 
unto the earth. The star was Chosroes, the king of Persia. He 
was overthrown by Heraclius, the emperor of the East. His 
fall was the key by which the bottomless pit was opened. For 
Rome, in overthrowing Persia, utterly exhausted herself; and 
thus the only two powers which were capable of meeting and 
crushing Mohammedanism, namely Persia, and Eastern Rome, 
were virtually taken out of the way by this revolution. The 
bottomless pit, symbolizing the wastes of the Arabian deserts, 
poured forth a great smoke, or the dark and delusive doctrines 
propagated by Mohammed and his fanatical followers. Chos- 
roes, after his loss of empire, was murdered in the year A. D. 
628; and the year 629 is marked by Mohammed's conquest of 
Arabia and the first war of the Moslems against the Roman 
empire. The locusts that came out of the smoke symbolized the 
Arabian horsemen, as they went forth to fight what they called 
the battles of the Lord. 

"Their mission was to torment men five months, but not to 
kill them. Rev. 9 :5-10. This period is doubtless prophetic, de- 
noting 150 years. If so, the question arises, from what point 
are these years to be dated? 

"The eleventh verse gives us the key to the solution of 
the query. They had a king over them, whose name is given 
both in Hebrew and Greek as 'destroyer.' The conclusion 
naturally follows that the ^Ye months of torment must have 
taken place under this Ottoman power after its consolidation 
into a kingly government. Previous to the time of Othman, 



MQHAMMEDANIANS OR TURKS 183 

the Mohammedan power was composed of separate and distinct 
tribes. Under the policy of this man, they were consolidated 
into one government, with himself as king, although he never 
took the title of Sultan. This was near the close of the thir- 
teenth century; and that power has ever since been known 
as the Ottoman empire, after the name of Othman, its founder. 

"The first invasion of Roman territory by Othman took 
place on the 27th day of July, 1299. [Note on the chart, the 
words, "1299, July 27, first Woe Began." It is at the right of 
line 22, extending from line Q to L.] Commencing the five 
months' torment from this event, they would end 150 years 
later, in 1449. ["1449 July 27, second Woe Began" is found on 
the chart, on line 23, also extending from Q to L.] As we in- 
quire for the events which mark the termination of that period, 
we are brought to the sounding of the next trumpet. 

"When the sixth angel sounded, a voice was heard say- 
ing, 'Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river 
Euphrates. The river Euphrates must here be taken for a 
symbol of that kingdom of which it was the principal river, 
which was the Ottoman, or Turkish empire. The four angels 
are supposed to mean the four chief Sultanies of which that 
empire was composed. These were Iconium, Aleppo, Damascus, 
and Bagdad. 

"They were 'loosed;' that is to say, they were to have 
thereafter not simply the power of tormenting, but of destroy- 
ing. This was accomplished by the following events : 

"When the last emperor of the Greeks, John Paleologus, 
died, leaving no children, Constantine Deacozes succeeded to 
the empire; but he would not venture to ascend the throne 
without asking the consent of Amurath, the Turkish Sultan. 
Thus he virtually surrendered his power into Turkish hands. 
And this was in the very year when the 150 years of the preced- 
ing trumpet ended, namely, in 1449. Amurath was succeeded 
by Mohammedan II, in 1451, who set his heart on 'destroying' 
or making a complete conquest of this division of the Roman 
empire, by taking its capital, the city of Constantinople. The 
siege commenced April 6, 1453, and the city was taken on the 
16th of May following. The eastern seat of the Caesars thus 
became the seat of the Ottoman empire, and has so remained 
to this day. 

"The principal subject for exposition under this trumpet 
is the prophetic period brought to view in verse 15. The angels 
were loosed for an hour, a day, a month, and a year. This, 
reduced from prophetic to literal time, gives us the following 



184 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

period ; a year, 360 days, 360 years ; a month, 30 days, 30 years ; 
a day, one year; an hour, a twenty-fourth part of a prophetic 
day, 15 literal days; making in all 391 years, and 15 days. 
This added to 'the date, July 27, 1449, where the 150 years of 
the previous trumpet ended, brings us to August 11, 1840. 
[The date "1840, Aug. 11, 2nd Woe Ends," is on the chart, 
between lines 24 and 25, extending from Q to L.J 

"The means by which the Mohammedans achieved their 
wonderful conquests are described in verses 17 and 18 as fire, 
and smoke, and brimstone; and it is a remarkable fact that 
in this revolution, gun-powder was first used as an implement 
of war. It thus appears that John, in A. D. 96, penned a 
prophecy of that notable invention which appeared as a new 
engine of destruction thirteen hundred years from his time, 
and has revolutionized the mode of warfare throughout the 
civilized world. 

"As the prophetic period of this trumpet commenced by 
the voluntary surrender of power into the hands of the Turks 
by the Christian emperor of the east, so we might justly con- 
clude that its termination would be marked by the voluntary 
surrender of that power by the Turkish Sultan back again 
into the hands of the Christians. In 1838 Turkey became 
involved in war with Egypt. The Egyptians bid fair to over- 
throw the Turkish power. To prevent this, the four great 
powers of Europe, England, Russia, Austria, and Prussia, 
interfered to sustain the Turkish government. Turkey ac- 
cepted their intervention. A conference was held in London 
at which an ultimatum was drawn up to be presented to 
Mehemet AH, the Pacha of Egypt. It is evident that when 
this ultimatum should be placed in the hands of Mehemet, the 
destiny of the Ottoman empire would be virtually lodged in 
the hands of the Christian powers of Europe. This ultimatum 
was placed in the hands of Mehemet on the 11th day of 
August, 1840, and on that very day the Sultan addressed a 
note to the ambassadors of the four powers, inquiring what 
should be done in case Mehemet refused to comply with the 
terms which they had proposed. (All of this was done without 
any knowledge of the prophecy, but in direct fulfillment of it.) 
The answer was that he need not alarm himself about any con- 
tingency that might arise; for they had made provision for 
that. The prophetic period ended, and on that very day the 
control of the Mohammedan affairs passed into the hands of 
Christians, just as the control of Christian affairs had passed 
into the hands of the Mohammedans 391 years and 15 days 



THE LATTER RAIN 1S5 



before. Thus the second woe ended, and the sixth trumpet 
ceased its sounding, in A. D. 1840. 

" Passing over the tenth and a portion of the eleventh 
chapters of Revelation, the series of trumpets is taken up again 
in verse 14, of chapter 11. The events of this trumpet are 
described in the five following verses. They are such as to 
show that this trumpet witnesses the conclusion of all earthly 
kingdoms and the beginning of the everlasting reign of 
Christ. Among the events introduced is the opening of the 
temple of God in heaven. Yerse 19. This was the commence- 
ment of the work of cleansing the sanctuary, as explained in 
the exposition of that subject, — a work which constitutes the 
finishing of the mystery of God spoken of in Rev. 10:7, and 
marks the beginning of the sounding of the seventh trumpet. 
It is therefore evident that the seventh angel began to sound 
in the autumn of 1844, and the little space termed ' quickly,' 
which was to intervene between the second and third woes, 
reached from August 11, 1840, where the sixth trumpet ceased 
to sound, to the autumn of 1844, where the seventh angel and 
the third woe began. [See chart on line 25, extending from 
Q to L.] The eighteenth verse of Revelation 11 shows that 
this trumpet covers the concluding troubles of the last days, 
and reaches over to the destruction of the wicked at the 
end of the thousand . years of Revelation 20." — " Synopsis of 
Present Truth," pp. 213-218. 



THE LATTER RAIN 

In order to understand clearly the subject of the "latter 
rain," it is necessary to understand that of the "early rain." 
An explanation of this has been given in a previous chapter. 

At the time of the early rain, there were the pentecostal 
showers of the Holy Spirit shed abroad in the hearts of the 
apostles and early believers, and they were endued with great 
power, to give to the world, in a short time, the good news of 
the first advent of Christ. So in the latter rain, the Holy 
Spirit is to come into the hearts of the believers with great 
power, to fit them to give to the world in the last generation, 
the good news of the second coming of Christ, which will close 
the history of this world. 

The closing work of the gospel in the world must go forth 
in all its fulness. This closing message must have in it every 
principle of truth that was ever connected with the plan of 
salvation for fallen man. 



186 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

We refer the reader to the picture on line A of the chart, 
between lines 24 and 26. In the center of this picture, near the 
top, is a dove, which is used to represent the Holy Spirit. From 
this dove, rays of light are being shed abroad upon every 
branch of work carried on by the people who are giving this 
last message. At the right, near the top, is the minister preach- 
ing at a tent service. Further down in the center, on the 
right, is represented the medical missionary work ; another way 
of giving the true principles of Christianity to the world. In 
the lower right-hand corner is a picture of the home Bible 
study; a very successful way of presenting the truth to the 
people. In the lower center of the picture, the regular church 
service is seen, which, of course, includes the Sabbath-school 
work. In the center, at the bottom, is represented a very 
effectual way of teaching the children the way of everlasting 
life, the church school. In the lower left-hand corner is shown 
the missionary colporter, distributing religious literature from 
house to house. In the center, on the left, stands the foreign 
missionary, preaching to the heathen of other lands. On the 
left, near the top, the true mode of baptism is shown. 

It is also true that while the Holy Spirit is shedding light 
and power from the throne of God upon every branch of this 
closing work, the power of darkness is settling down upon 
the earth and its inhabitants, who are rejecting the message 
for this time, and their hearts are turning to the pleasures, 
lusts, and greed of this world. 

As the angel of Revelation 18 joins the three angels of 
Rev. 14:6-10, the gospel message swells into a loud cry, the 
latter rain is poured out upon the people of God, and they go 
forth in the mighty power of the Holy Spirit, fearlessly pro- 
claiming the last message of mercy that the inhabitants of this 
world will ever hear. 

The great burden of this closing message, and the power 
with which it is to go, is described in the following Scripture : 
"And after these things I saw another angel come down from 
heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened 
with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, 
saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the 
habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a 
cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have 
drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the 
kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and 
the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abun- 
dance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from 



THE LATTER RAIN 187 



heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that ye be not 
partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 
For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remem- 
bered her iniquities. ' ' Rev. 18 :l-5. 

SPURGEON ON THE LATTER RAIN 
Sermon No. 30, Page 235. 

" Another great work of the Holy Spirit which is not accom- 
plished, is the bringing on of the latter-day glory. In a few 
more years — I know not when, I know not how — THE HOLY 
SPIRIT WILL BE POURED OUT in a far different style 
from the present. There are diversities of operations; and 
during the last few years it has been the case that the diversi- 
fied operations have consisted in very little pouring out of the 
Spirit. Ministers have gone on in dull routine, continually 
preaching — preaching — preaching, and little good has been 
done. . . . THE HOUR IS COMING, . . . WHEN 
THE HOLY GHOST SHALL BE POURED OUT 
AGAIN IN SUCH A WONDERFUL MANNER, that many 
shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased, — the 
knowledge of the Lord shall cover the earth as the waters 
cover the surface of the great deep. . . . We are not 
going to be dragging on forever like Pharaoh with the wheels 
off his chariot. My heart exults and my eyes flash with the 
thought that very likely I shall live to see the out-pouring of 
the Spirit; when 'the sons and the daughters of God again 
shall prophesy, and the young men shall see visions, and the 
old men shall dream dreams.' Perhaps there shall be no 
miraculous gifts, . . . but yet there shall be a miraculous 
amount of holiness, such an extraordinary fervor of prayer, 
such a real communion with God and so much vital religion, 
and such a spread of the doctrines of the cross, that everyone 
will see that verily the Spirit is poured out like water, and the 
RAINS are descending from above. For that let us pray, 
let us continually labor for it, and seek it of God. ,, 

Another speaking of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, 
says: 

"The work will be similar to that of the day of Pente- 
cost. As the 'former rain' was given, in the outpouring of 
the Holy Spirit at the opening of the gospel, to cause the up- 
springing of the precious seed, so the 'latter rain' will be given 
at its close, for the ripening of the harvest. 'Then shall we 
know, if we follow on to know the Lord ; His going forth is pre- 
pared as the morning ; and He shall come unto us as the rain, 
as the latter and former rain unto the earth.' Hosea 6:3. 'Be 
glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your 
God; for He hath given you the former rain moderately, and 
He will cause to come down for you rain, the former rain, and 



188 THE STORY OF THE AGES 



the latter rain.' Joel 2 :23. 'In the last days, saith God, I will 
pour out My Spirit upon all flesh. ' 'And it shall come to pass, 
that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be 
saved/ Acts- 2:17, 21. 

"The great work of the gospel is not to close with less 
manifestation of the power of God than marked its opening. 
The prophecies which were fulfilled in the outpouring of the 
former rain at the opening of the gospel, are again to be ful- 
filled in the latter rain at its close. Here are 'the times of 
refreshing' to which the Apostle Peter looked forward when 
he said, 'Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins 
may be blotted out [in the investigative Judgment] , when the 
times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; 
and He shall send Jesus.' Acts 3:19, 20. Servants of God, 
with their faces lighted up and shining with holy consecra- 
tion, will hasten from place to place to proclaim the message 
from heaven. By thousands of voices, all over the earth, the 
warning will be given. Miracles will be wrought, the sick will 
be healed, and signs and wonders will follow the believers. 
Satan also works with lying wonders, even bringing down fire 
from heaven in the sight of men. Thus the inhabitants of the 
earth will be brought to take their stand." 



SIGNS OF HIS COMING 

In answer to the questions asked Jesus by His disciples, 
"When shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of 
Thy coming and of the end of the world?" Jesus said: "Im- 
mediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun 
be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the 
stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven shall be 
shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in 
heaven, and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and 
they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven, 
with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels 
with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together 
His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the 
other." Matt. 24:29-31. 

Mark 13:24 also speaks of the darkening of the sun, in 
these words: "In those days, after that tribulation, the sun 
shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light." 

This locates more definitely the time in which the sun was 
to be darkened. The days of tribulation here spoken of were 
the 1260 years of papal supremacy, which began in A. D. 538, 
and ended with the capture of Eome and the pope by the 
French, in 1798. The tribulation or persecution of those days 



SIGNS OF HIS COMING 189 

was "shortened" for the elect's sake. That is, the active 
persecution of the church by papal power ceased some time 
before the days expired. Then, according to Mark's statement, 
the sun should be darkened between that time and 1798. This 
was fulfilled; and May 19, 1780, has passed into history as "the 
dark day." 

This is a well-known historical fact, as attested by the 
following statements from undoubted authorities on the sub- 
ject. 

Noah Webster's dictionary, in the edition for 1869, under 
the head of "Explanatory and Pronouncing Vocabulary of 
Noted Names," says: 

"The Dark Day, May 19, 1780, so called on account of a 
remarkable darkness on that day extending over all New 
England. In some places, persons could not see to read com- 
mon print in the open air for several hours together. Birds 
sang their evening songs, disappeared, and became silent ; 
fowls went to roost ; cattle sought the barn-yard ; and candles 
were lighted in the houses. The obscuration began about ten 
o'clock in the morning, and continued till the middle of the 
next night, but with differences * of degree and duration in 
different places. . For several days previous, the wind had 
been variable, but chiefly from the southwest and the north- 
east. The true cause of this remarkable phenomenon is not 
known." 

The following is taken from the Journal of the Connecticut 
House of Representatives, Friday, May 19, 1780 : 

"A solemn gloom of unusual darkness . . . excluded 
the light so that none could see to read or write in the House, 
even at either window, or distinguish persons at a small dis- 
tance, or perceive any distinction of dress in the circle of 
attendants, wherefore, at eleven o'clock adjourned the House 
till two in the afternoon. ' ' 

Speaking of the dark day of May 19, 1780, Herschel, the 
noted astronomer, says : 

"The dark day in North America was one of those wonder- 
ful phenomena of nature which will always be read with in- 
terest, but which philosophy is at a loss to explain." 

An extract from a sermon preached by the Rev. Elam 
Potter, May 28, 1780, reads as follows : 

"But especially I mention that wonderful darkness on the 
19th of May inst. (1780). Then, as in our text, the sun was 
darkened; such a darkness as probably was never known be- 
fore since the crucifixion of our Lord. People left their work 
in the house and in the field. Travelers stopped; schools 
broke up at eleven o 'clock ; people lighted candles at noonday ; 
and the fire shown as at night. Some people, I have been 
told, were in dismay, and thought whether the day of Judg- 
ment was not drawing on. A great part of the following 



190 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

night also was singularly dark. The moon, though in the 
full, gave no light, as in our text. ' ' 

The remarkable darkening of the moon on the following 
night, was the next sign, "And the moon shall not give her 
light." Concerning this "Stone's History of Beverly," says: 

"The night succeeding that day (May 19, 1780) was of such 
pitchy darkness that, in some instances, horses could not be 
compelled to leave the stable when wanted for service. 
About midnight, . . . the moon and stars appeared with 
unimpared brilliancy. ' ' 

Mr. Tenny, of Exeter, N. H., quoted by Mr. Gage of the His- 
torical Society, speaking of the dark day and dark night, says : 

"The darkness of the following- evening was probably as 
gross as has ever been observed since the Almighty first gave 
birth to light. I could not help conceiving at the time, that 
if every luminous body in the universe had been shrouded 
in impenetrable darkness, or struck out of existence, the dark- 
ness could not have been more complete. A sheet of white 
paper held within a few inches of the eye was equally invisible 
with the blackest velvet." 

FALLING OF THE STARS 

On the night of November 13, 1833, the grandest display 
of celestial fireworks ever beheld, took place, in fulfillment of 
another sign, "And the stars shall fall from heaven." From 
Burritt's "Geography of the Heavens," page 163, ed. 1854, 
we take the following description of this remarkable event : 

"But the most sublime phenomenon of shooting stars, of 
which the world has furnished any record, was witnessed 
throughout the United States on the morning of the 13th of 
November, 1833. The entire extent of this astonishing ex- 
hibition has not been precisely ascertained; but it covered no 
inconsiderable portion of the earth's surface. . . . The first 
appearance was that of fireworks of the most imposing gran- 
deur, covering the entire vault of heaven with myriads of fire- 
balls, resembling sky-rockets. Their coruscations were bright, 
gleaming, and incessant, and they fell thick as the flakes in the 
early snows of December. To the splendors of this celestial 
exhibition, the most brilliant sky-rockets and fire-works of art, 
bear less relation than the twinkling of the most tiny star to 
the broad glare of the sun. The whole heavens seemed in mo- 
tion, and suggested to some the awful grandeur of the image 
employed in the Apocalypse, upon the opening of the sixth 
seal, when, 'the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as 
a fig-tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a 
mighty wind/ " 

Professor Olmstead, the celebrated astronomer of Yale Col- 
lege, says: 

"Those who were so fortunate as to witness the exhibition 
of shooting stars on the morning of Nov. 13, 1833, probably 



SIGNS OF HIS COMING 191 

saw the greatest display of celestial fire-works that has ever 
beer since the creation of the world, or at least within the 
annals covered by the pages of history. 

"In nearly all places the meteors began to attract notice 
by their unusual frequency as early as eleven o'clock, and in- 
creased in numbers and splendor until about four o 'clock, from 
which time they gradually declined, but were visible until lost 
in the light of day. The meteors did not fly at random over 
all parts of the sky, but appeared to emanate from a point in 
the constellation Leo, near a star called Gamma Leonis, in the 
bent of the sickle. 

"The extent of the shower of 1833 was such as to cover no 
inconsiderable part of the earth's surface, from the middle of 
the Atlantic on the east to the Pacific on the west; and from 
the northern coast of South America to undefined regions 
among the British possession on the north, the exhibition was 
visible, and everywhere presented nearly the" same appear- 
ance." 

The signs in the sun and moon, as premonitions of Christ's 
second coming, were also foretold by the prophet Joel in these 
words : 

"The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into 
blood before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes." 
Joel 2:31. 

In addition to the signs in the heavens, Christ said that 
there would be "upon the earth distress of nations, with 
perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts fail- 
ing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are 
coming on the earth; for the powers of heaven shall be 
shaken." Luke 21:25, 26. 

These signs were to follow the signs in the heavens. Every- 
one at all familiar with the present condition of things, knows 
that this exactly describes the state of affairs as they exist in 
the world today. The nations are perplexed; the sea and the 
waves roar; and men look with fear and forebodings into the 
future. This was to be the condition of the world just before 
the coming of Christ, for the very next words of Christ are, 
"And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud 
with power and great glory." 

Under the sixth seal, in Rev. 6:12-17, the signs in the 
heavens are again mentioned in prophecy: "And I beheld when 
he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earth- 
quake ; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the 
moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the 
earth even as a fig-tree casteth her untimely figs when she 
is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a 



192 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

scroll when it is rolled together;- and every mountain and 
island were moved out of their places. ' ' 

The fourth and fifth seals without doubt apply to the 
papal persecution. The great earthquake, then, with which 
the sixth seal opens, must be that of Lisbon, in 1755, which agi- 
tated the greater part of the earth, and destroyed many thou- 
sands of lives; 60,000 in Lisbon alone. 

The darkening of the sun and moon followed in 1780, and 
the falling of the stars in 1833. Consequently the next event 
which we are to expect under this seal is the departing of the 
heavens as a scroll. This still being in the future, we may say 
that we are now living between the time of the thirteenth 
and fourteenth verses of Revelation 6, or between the falling 
of the stars and the parting of the heavens as a scroll. 

THE PARABLE OF THE FIG-TREE 

After giving the signs of His coming, the Saviour, to still 
further impress their significance upon the minds of His dis- 
ciples, related the parable of the fig tree. He said: "Now 
learn a parable of the fig-tree ; when his branch is yet tender, 
and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh. So 
likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it 
[margin, He] is near, even at the doors." Matt. 24:32, 33. 

In this parable Christ used the unfailing signs in nature 
as evidence that His words would surely come to pass. "When 
the trees of the field begin to put forth their leaves, and the 
tender grass springs up, covering the earth with its green 
velvet carpet, we know for a certainty that summer is near. 
So, likewise, when we shall see the signs Christ gave us com- 
ing to pass, — the signs which were to be as unfailing as the 
laws of nature themselves, we are to know that His coming is 
near, "even at the doors." 

THE LAST GENERATION 

The generation that was to see the signs, and hear the 
warning message based upon them, was also to witness the 
second advent, for Christ said: "Verily, I say unto you, This 
generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." 
Matt. 24 :34. 

The proclamation of the coming and kingdom of Christ is 
given to the last generation. God sent Noah to preach to the 
last generation before the flood, not to any preceding one. 
The very generation which was destroyed by the waters of the 
flood, saw Noah build the ark, and heard his warning voice. So 



SECOND COMING OF CHRIST 193 

God has raised up men today to give the solemn warning to 
the world at the right time. To give assurance of His second 
coming, and that all of these things foretelling that event, will 
surely come to pass, Christ said, "Heaven and earth shall pass 
away, but My words shall not pass away." 



THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST 
AND FIRST RESURRECTION 

On line 27 of the chart, extending from line C to Z, are the 
words, "Christ's Second Coming," "First Resurrection," 
"Wicked all Die," "Righteous Ascend to Heaven." 

The second, personal, literal, coming of Christ, with the 
realization of all the blessed hopes that center around it, is not 
only a Bible doctrine, but in all ages of the world it has been 
the one grand central event to which the church has looked 
forward with longing desires, and eager expectations, as the 
time when "hope would change to glad fruition, faith to sight 
and prayer to praise." 

AN ANCIENT BELIEF 

As far back as Enoch, the seventh from Adam, Christ's 
coming in glory was foretold. "And Enoch also, the seventh 
from Adam, prophesied, saying, "Behold the Lord cometh with 
ten thousands of His saints [holy ones, R. V.]." Jude 14. 

The prophet Job also speaks of the coming of Christ at the 
last day. "For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He 
shall stand at the latter day upon the earth : and though after 
my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see 
God : whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold ; 
and not another." Job 19:25-27. 

David likewise foretells of Christ's coming to gather His 
saints. He says, "Our God shall come, and shall not keep si- 
lence: a fire shall devour before Him, He shall call to the 
heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His 
people. Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have 
made a covenant with Me by sacrifice." Ps. 50:3-5. 

Isaiah, prophesying of Christ's second coming, says, "And 
it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God ; we have waited 
for Him, and He will save us : this is the Lord ; we have waited 
for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation." 
Isa. 25 :9. 



194 THE STORY OF THE AGES 



A PROMINENT NEW TESTAMENT DOCTRINE 

The New Testament writers also speak clearly of the second 
coming of Christ. 

"And then shall ye see the Son of Man coming in a cloud, 
with power and great glory." Luke 21:27. 

"Behold He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see 
Him." Rev. 1:7. 

"For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth 
even unto the west, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man 
be." Matt. 24:27. 

"When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the 
holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His 
glory." Matt. 25:31. 

Paul, looking forward to the time of his reward, says, 
"Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, 
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day : 
and not to me only, but unto all them also that love His ap- 
pearing." 2 Tim. 4:8. 

Christ Himself said to His disciples, "If I go and prepare 
a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself, 
that where I am, there ye may be also." John 14:3. 

MANNER OF HIS COMING 

When Jesus ascended to heaven after His resurrection, a 
vast throng of heavenly angels came to earth to escort Him 
back to the courts of glory. The disciples stood gazing heav- 
enward to catch the last glimpse of their ascending Lord. Two 
of the angelic throng alighted by their side, and said to them, 
"Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? 
this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, 
shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go intoi 
heaven." Acts 1:11. The disciples gazed until the cloud of 
bright glory received Him out of their sight. The hope of 
Christ's second coming ever has been the joy and hope of His 
church, and it will continue to be until it shall be consum- 
mated in his appearing on the white cloud. 

When Christ ascended to heaven He ascended in person; 
and when He returns He will return in person. In 1 Thess. 
4:1§, 17, Paul says, "The LORD HIMSELF shall DESCEND 
FROM HEAVEN with a shout, ... the dead in Christ 
shajl rise first; then we which are alive . . . shall be 
caught up together ... to meet the Lord in the air." 



SECOND COMING OF CHRIST 195 

TESTIMONY OF EMINENT DIVINES 

The second coming of Christ has not only been the culmi- 
nating event early looked forward to by true believers and 
inspired writers of the past, but it has also been the bright 
expectation, the blessed hope, and the sublime thought to many 
of the most eminent and devout Christian writers and workers 
of modern times. 

D. L. Moody, in his work, "The Second Coming of Chris V 
pages 6, 7, writes upon this subject as follows : 

"To my mind this precious doctrine — for such I must call 
it — <of the return of the Lord to this earth, is taught in the 
New Testament as clearly as any other doctrine in it; yet I 
was in the church fifteen or sixteen years before I ever heard 
a sermon on it. There is hardly any church that doesn't 
make a great deal of baptism; but in all of Paul's epistles I 
believe baptism is only spoken of thirteen times, while it 
speaks about the return of our Lord fifty times; and yet the 
church has had very little to say about it. Now I can see a 
reason for this. The devil does not want to see this truth; 
for nothing would wake up the church so much. The moment 
a man takes hold of the truth that Jesus Christ is coming 
back again to receive His followers to Himself, the world 
loses its hold upon him. Gas stocks, and water stocks, and 
stocks in banks and railroads are of very much less conse- 
quence to him then. His heart is free, and he looks for the 
blessed appearing of his Lord, Who, at His coming, will take 
him into His blessed kingdom." 

Mr. Moody further says: 

"I believe He is yonder getting His guest-chamber ready, 
and the moment it is ready, those clouds shall roll away, and 
He will come, and we shall be caught up together to meet the 
Lord in the air." 

Dr. A. J. Gordon, in his work, "How Christ Came to 
Church, ' ' pages 44, 45, says : 

" 'This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, 
shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into 
heaven,' is the parting promise of Jesus to His disciples, com- 
municated through the two men in white apparel, as a cloud 
received Him out of their sight. When after more than fifty 
years in glory He breaks the silence and speaks once more in 
the Revelation which He gave to His servant John, the post- 
ascension Gospel which He sends opens with, 'Behold, He 
cometh with clouds,' and closes with 'Surely I come quickly.' 
Considering the solemn emphasis thus laid upon this doctrine, 
and considering the great prominence given to it throughout 
the teaching of our Lord and of His apostles, how was it that 
for the first five years of my pastoral life, it had absolutely 
no place in my preaching? Undoubtedly the reason lay in 
the lack of early instruction. Of all the sermons heard from 



196 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

childhood on, I do not remember listening to a single one 
upon this subject." 

Speaking of the effect of a belief in this doctrine, and the 
importance of it, Dr. Gordon further says: 

"The godly William Hewitson declares that the discovery 
of the Scriptural hope of our Lord's second coming wrought in 
him a change amounting almost to a second conversion. "What 
if another, not presuming to be named in company with this 
consecrated saint, should nevertheless set his hand and seal 
to the affirmation that the strongest and most permanent 
impulse of his ministry came from - his apprehension of the 
blessed hope of our Lord's second coming? 

"But how is it that this doctrine, so plainly and con- 
spicuously written in Scripture, could have remained so long 
undiscovered? In answering this question we see how little 
ground we have for glorying over the Jews. They did not 
recognize Christ in His first advent because they discerned in 
Scripture only those predictions which announced Him as a 
reigning and conquering Messiah. This conception they wove 
into a veil of exposition and tradition so thick that when Jesus 
appeared as the lowly and humble Nazarene they knew Him 
not, but 'hid as it were their faces from His.' " lb., page 46. 

Rev. D. W. Bosworth, D. D., says: 

"I would as soon relinquish all hopes of salvation and of 
heaven and immortality, as give up the expectation of see- 
ing the Saviour in person on earth, just as His disciples saw 
Him near Bethany. Surrender the second advent of the 
Messiah ? Never ! It is the one sublime event. ' ' 

Behold, He comes ! Arise ! Awake 

From darkness and from slumber! 
Refill your lamps, go shod with peace, 

And join to swell the number 
Of faithful souls who watch and wait 

The coming of their Saviour. 

Behold, He comes ! He shakes the earth, 

The mountains rend asunder; 
His face is like the lightning-flash, 

His voice is like the thunder ; 
Prom east to west His trump shall sound, 

Our long-expected Saviour. 

Sinners, in dire despair, shall call, 
"Hide us, mountains, on us fall!" 
While saints ascending from the tomb 
Sing loud with joy, The Lord has come ! 
The Lord for Whom we 've waited long, 
Our blessed Lord and Saviour. 

Prudence Thomas. . 



SECOND COMING OF CHRIST 197 

THE PARTING OF THE HEAVENS 

On lines A and 27 of the chart, is a representation of the 
departing of the heavens as a scroll, and the second coming of 
Christ, with all the holy angels to raise the righteous dead and 
translate the righteous living. 

Great changes are to take place at Christ's second coming. 
In Rev. 6:14, we read, "And the heaven departed as a scroll 
when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island 
were moved out of their places." 

By referring to the chart on line A, between lines 26*4 an d 
28, will be seen a representation of the condition of things at 
the second coming of Christ. 

The Scripture suggests that an opening or rolling back of 
the heavens is to occur, different from anything ever yet be- 
held by the eye of man. A clear atmosphere is a very im- 
portant factor in getting a view of the starry heavens. It is a 
matter that the astronomer must always take into account. 
More or less smoke and floating particles of dust are in the 
atmosphere at times, which obscure the sight to some degree; 
the strata of atmosphere varies in density ; and these things all 
act their part in preventing as good a view of the stars as 
might otherwise be possible. 

A writer on astronomy speaks of the condition of the at- 
mosphere on a certain mountain observatory, as follows: 

"Who knows the meaning of the word ' clear'? No one 
is able to understand what clear means if living in a valley. 
Here on Echo Mountain the atmosphere is so clear that the 
stars seem near enough to touch, and the mountain air won- 
derfully pure. The stellar hosts glow with a brilliancy all 
unknown to those living anywhere near sea-level. At all 
times, save immediately after copious rains, the dust surround- 
ing the earth is visible beneath the summit of the mountain. 
It covers the entire vista, even out to the sea. To us on the 
mountain top it seems at times as if every human being would 
choke in this layer of dust. 

"Above us at night shine Sirius and Vego like huge 
diamonds; Arcturus and Spica likewise, and above all the 
giant star-sun Canopus, glittering with amazing brilliancy in 
the distant south, and flashing its rays over myriads of wave- 
crests tossing in the Pacific Ocean. This, the brightest star 
in the celestial vault, can not be seen from the latitude of 
New York. The magnificent constellation of Orion, Hercules, 
and the Polar Bear are so beautiful that words are power- 
less to describe them. 

"I never really saw this sidereal base until with the tele- 
scope up here. After several days of rain, the atmosphere 
is swept clear of dust. Then one is really within cosmic deeps 



198 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

when the telescope suddenly sweeps over fathomless inter- 
stellar chasms, doors, or windows through which one ap- 
parently looks into the very bottom of space." 

This clearing of the atmosphere, or parting of the heavens 
as a scroll, immediately precedes the second coming of Christ. 
It is then that "the kings of the earth, and the great men, 
and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, 
and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in 
the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the 
mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of 
Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the 
Lamb : For the great day of His wrath is come ; and who shall 
be able to stand?" Rev. 6:15-17. 

The heavenly curtain is not withdrawn for man to view 
merely the stars. "A scene of far more, yea, of transcendent 
importance appears before the astonished gaze of man. Far 
away, yet clear to the eyes of earth's inhabitants, appears the 
sign of the Son of Man. At first it seems no larger than a 
man's hand. Dark it appears in contrast with the glory 
streaming from the heavens, but the form is unmistakable. 
Every eye beholds it as the sign, — the token of the Son of Man. 
Christ the rejected, yet Christ the Judge of all the earth, is 
coming. He is emblazoned with all the glory of His Father ; He 
is coming clothed in His own transcendent beauty, and with 
Him are all the shining cohorts from the courts of glory — 
every angel— so that there is silence in heaven as this mighty 
retinue sweeps down from heaven to earth." It is that man 
may view, unhindered, the coming of the Son of God, that 
the heavens are thus parted or rolled together as a scroll. For 
ages His word has declared that when He comes, "Every eye 
shall see Him. ' ' Rev. 1 :7. 

As the cloud of glory with Jesus and all the holy angels 
draw near, they stop in mid-air, a certain distance from the 
earth, as stated in 1 Thess. 4:16, 17, "For the Lord Himself 
shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the Voice of the 
archangel, and with the trump of God ; and the dead in Christ 
shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be 
caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord 
in the air." 

The Lord never does anything unless He has an object in 
view. The reason for remaining in mid-air is very apparent, 
as Rev. 1:7 says: "Behold He cometh with clouds, and every 
eye shall see Him." 



SECOND COMING OF CHRIST 199 

The departing of the heavens as a scroll, and the clearing 
of the atmosphere increases the power of man's vision very- 
much. So when the Saviour is seated upon a cloud, high up in 
mid-air, where he remains stationary while the earth is making 
one revolution upon its axis, the Scripture can readily be un- 
derstood that says, "EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM." 

From every part of this round earth, as it comes under the 
cloud, the dead are raised by the voice of the Son of God. The 
living are changed from mortal to immortal, and all are 
caught up to meet the Lord in the air. Thus there will be a 
continual stream of resurrected and living saints passing from 
earth to the cloud during that one last day of their stay on 
earth. These, with Christ and all that vast company of angels, 
then proceed on their long journey from earth to heaven. 

The grandeur of the scenes as they appear to the redeemed, 
who before have looked upon the heavenly vault as simply 
space studded with small stars ; will be such that no human 
language can describe, no pen or artist's brush portray. These 
wonders and beauties will be for the saints to enjoy, not only 
during the short time they journey from earth to heaven, but 
throughout the eternal ages, as they visit all parts of the vast 
creation of God. 

"Till He come,"— let the words 
Linger on the trembling chords; 
Let the little while between 
In their golden light be seen: 
Let us think how heaven and home 
Lie beyond that — "Till He come. 



j ? 



When the weary ones we love 

To the silent land remove, 

Though the earth seems poor and waste, 

All our life-joy overcast, — 

Hush! be every murmur dumb; 

It is only— -"Till He come." 

Clouds and conflicts round us press; 
Would we have one sorrow less? 
All the sharpness of the cross, 
All that tells the world is loss, 
Death, and darkness, and the tomb, 
Only whisper — "Till He come." 

Edward H. Bickersteth. 

THE MILLENNIUM 
Line 27, extending from C to Z, on the chart, marks the 
time of Christ's second coming and the first resurrection, in 



200 THE STOItY OF THE AGES 

which only the righteous dead are raised to life. Of this resur- 
rection, Rev. 20:6 says, ''Blessed and holy is he that hath part 
in the first resurrection; on such the second death hath no 
power. ' ' 

This line also marks the time of the binding of Satan on 
this earth, and the beginning of the one thousand years, or 
millennium, in which the earth remains in a desolate condition. 
Rev. 20:1-3 states that Satan was bound a thousand years, 
that he was cast into the bottomless pit, that he should deceive 
the nations no more until the thousand years were finished, and 
that then he should be loosed a little season. 

THE EARTH DESOLATE 

The prophet Jeremiah, looking down through prophetic 
vision to the second coming of Christ, had a view of the condi- 
tion of the earth during the one thousand years between the 
first and second resurrections. He says, "I beheld the earth, and, 
lo, it was without form, and void, and the heavens, and they 
had no light. I beheld the mountains, and lo, they trembled, 
and all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and lo, there was no 
man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and 
lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof 
were broken down at the presence of the Lord, and by His 
fierce anger. For thus hath the Lord said, the whole land shall 
be desolate; yet will I not make a full end." Jer. 4:23-27. 

The prophet Isaiah also had a view of the world while in 
its desolate condition, and describes it as follows: "Behold, 
the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and 
turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants 
thereof. . . . The land shall be utterly emptied, and ut- 
terly spoiled, for the Lord hath spoken this word." Isa. 
24 :1, 3. This prophecy evidently must apply to the same time 
as the prophecy just quoted from Jeremiah. This is the only 
time in the history of this world, from its creation and fall to 
its final re-creation and restitution, that such statements could, 
in truth, be made concerning it. 

THE BINDING OF SATAN 

Ever since the fall of man, Satan and his angels have been 
going to and fro in the earth, deceiving mankind. At the sec- 
ond coming of Christ, the living wicked are all destroyed, the 
righteous living, together with the righteous resurrected dead, 
are taken to heaven, and the earth is thus left without a human 
inhabitant. Because of the great earthquake described in Rev. 



THE DAY OF JUDGMENT 201 

16:18-20, in which the cities of the nations fall, every island 
is moved out of its place, the mountains disappear, and the 
world becomes a vast scene of desolation for one thousand 
years. Into this bottomless pit Satan and his angels are cast, 
to be bound literally to this earth by the taking away of their 
power to leave it. They are also bound by there being no 
human inhabitants here to be deceived by them, as the wicked 
are all dead, and the righteous are in heaven. They are thus 
wholly cut off from the work of deception and ruin in which 
they have delighted for six thousand years. Here in this earth, 
in its dark, desolate, and broken up condition, Satan and his 
evil angels are left to wander to and fro throughout the 
length and breadth of the earth, and to meditate upon the 
part they have acted in bringing about this condition of things, 
and upon the results of their rebellion. 



THE DAY OF JUDGMENT 

The wide red strip on the chart, between lines 27 and 29, 
extending from line C to line Z, represents the millennium, or 
the one thousand years between the first and second resurrec- 
tions. The statements made there, briefly tell the condition of 
the earth, and the things that are to take place, during that 
time. 

There are three different kinds of days mentioned in the 
Bible ; the natural day of 24 hours ; the prophetic day, or one 
year ; and the day of the Lord, or one thousand years. 

2 Peter 3 :7, 8 not only tells how long the day of the Lord 
is, but also tells some of the things that are to take place in 
that day. It says, "But the heavens and the earth which are 
now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire 
against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men." 
Here is a day in which the wicked are not only to be judged, 
but are to meet their punishment as well. The next verse tells 
how long that day is. It says, "But, beloved, be not ignorant 
of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand 
years, and a thousand years as one day. ' ' Then the day of the 
Lord, or day of judgment, is one thousand years long. 

Continuing, Peter says, "But the day of the Lord will come 
as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass 
away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fer- 
vent heat, the earth also, and the works that are therein shall 
be burned up." The Saviour, speaking of His second coming 



202 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

at this same time, says, "Behold, Lcome as a thief." Rev. 
16:15. That d'ay comes as a thief, and all these events take 
place at the second coming of Christ, or the beginning of the 
one thousand years that covers the time between the two 
resurrections. After verse 10 tells what is to take place at the 
beginning of that one-thousand-year day, it continues by re- 
lating the events that are to take place at its close, such as 
the burning, melting, and renewing of the earth. 

The millennium, or the one thousand years, is bounded by 
the two resurrections, and is called both the "day of the 
Lord' , and the "day of judgment." Rev. 6:13-17 tells when 
this day begins. After speaking of Christ's second coming, 
it says in verse 17, "For the great day of His wrath is come; 
and who shall be able to stand ? ' ' Then the great day of wrath 
and judgment of one thousand years begins at Christ's second 
coming. 

After giving an account in Rev. 20:1-3, of the binding of 
Satan on this earth for one thousand years, verse 4 tells what 
is to take place in heaven at the same time. It says, "And 
I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was 
given unto them." 

Solomon says that "God shall judge the righteous and 
the wicked; for there is a time there for every purpose and 
for every work." Eccl. 3:17. That it is the wicked who are 
to be judged during the thousand years, is shown by the fol- 
lowing : Rev. 20 :6 speaks of the resurrection of the righteous 
at the beginning of the thousand years; but verse 5 says that 
"the rest of the dead [the wicked] lived not again until the 
thousand years were finished." Then, during the thousand 
years, while the wicked are in their graves,, the righteous are in 
heaven investigating the record of the lives of the wicked, and 
passing judgment upon them. 

The fallen angels are also to be judged at this same time. 
The 6th verse of Jude says, "And the angels which kept not 
their first estate, but left their own habitation, He [God] hath 
reserved in . . . chains under darkness unto the judg- 
ment of the great day." 

Paul, in 1 Cor. 6 :l-3, states definitely who shall judge the 
wicked dead and fallen angels. "Dare any of you having a 
matter against another, go to law before the unjust and not 
before the saints ? Do ye not know that the saints shall judge 
the world? . . . Know ye not that we shall judge angels?" 

The saints are not alone in the great work of the judgment. 
They are associated with the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit 



THE BOOKS OF RECORD 203 

and all the heavenly hosts in judging the wicked and the 
fallen angels. Who could possibly appear against Satan and 
wicked men, and present against them so strong evidence as 
the saints who have been tempted by the one, and persecuted 
by the other? Thus the saints will aid in the last final judg- 
ment. 



THE BOOKS OF RECORD 

The Scriptures teach that a record of men's lives is kept, 
and that in the judgment the books of record will be used to 
determine the degree of reward or punishment. 

The Revelator, speaking upon this point, says, "And I saw 
the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books 
were opened ; and another book was opened, which is the book 
of Life ; and the dead were judged out of those things which 
were written in the books, according to their works." Rev. 
20:12. This Scripture clearly shows that books of record are 
kept in heaven, and that the dead are to be judged out of 
these books. It also brings to view another important book, 
the book of life. The contents of this book are likewise con- 
sulted in the judgment. 

Other Scriptures also speak of books being kept in heaven. 
In Malachi 3 :16, 17, we read: "Then they that feared the Lord 
spake often one to another ; and the Lord harkened, and heard 
it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for 
them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name. 
And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day 
when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them as a man 
spareth his own son that serveth him. ' ' This Scripture brings 
to view a book called the "Book of Remembrance" and states 
that this book was written before the Lord for them that 
feared Him, and that thought upon His name. From this it is 
evident that some angelic hand chronicles the acts of those 
who fear the Lord and meditate on His name. 

The prophet Jeremiah said of those in Israel who had 
apostatized from God, "For though thou wash thee with nitre, 
and take much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, 
saith the Lord." Jer. 2:22. The Lord, speaking through 
Isaiah, and noting the deeds of the self-righteous, who say to 
their fellows, "I am holier than thou," declared of them, "Be- 
hold, it is written before me : I will not keep silence, but will 
recompense, even recompense into their bosom." Isa. 65:6. 



204 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

Thus again we learn that sin and iniquity are written before 
the Lord. 

The book of life contains the names of all those who come 
into covenant relationship with Christ, whether they remain 
faithful, or whether they prove untrue to their profession. 
Some of the names recorded in it will always remain, while 
other names will be blotted out. It will finally contain only 
the names of the redeemed. This book is frequently spoken of 
in the Scriptures. The Saviour, in Rev. 3:5, says, "He that 
overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and 
I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will 
confess his name before My Father and before His angels/ ' 

From the foregoing Scriptures it seems that there are three 
different classes of books kept in heaven; THE BOOK OF 
LIKE, THE BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE, and THE BOOKS 
OF RECORD. 

In the investigative judgment which is to precede the com- 
ing of Christ, the cases of those who have made a start in 
the divine life will be considered. Christ will plead that, as 
pardon is written over against every sin which the overcomer 
has committed, these sins should be blotted out through the 
merits of His own blood, Christ's righteousness having been 
imputed to him. This being done, his name is retained in the 
book of life. 

In the case of those who have not proved faithful, pardon 
is not written against their sins, and Christ does not, therefore, 
confess their names before the Father and before the angels. 
Kev. 3 :5 ; Matt. 10 :32. As a result, their names are blotted out 
of the book of life, and their sins are retained against them. 

In the investigative judgment previous to the coming of 
Christ, the cases of the wicked dead who have never made a 
start in the way of salvation are not considered. That they 
are not to be saved has already been determined by the very 
fact that their names have never been placed in the book of 
life. In the day of judgment following the second advent, the 
saints constitute the tribunal which determines the punishment 
the wicked are to receive. 

The cases of those who have made their peace with God 
through faith in Christ, have confessed and forsaken their sins, 
will pass favorably in the investigative judgment. If living 
at that time, they will be translated at the appearing of Christ 
without seeing death. If dead, they will be raised and taken 
with the living saints to glory. At the end of the judgment, 
or the one thousand years, the prophet says, "Death and hell 



THE SECOND RESURRECTION 205 

were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And 
whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast 
into the lake of fire." Rev. 20 :14, 15. 



THE SECOND RESURRECTION 

On line 29, extending from C to Z, are the words, "Second 
Resurrection, Wicked Judged and all Destroyed." Also be- 
tween lines 29 and 30, from C to Z, are the statements, "Earth 
Dissolved by Fire and Renewed, Eden then Restored. Re- 
deemed Saints Return to Earth, their Everlasting Home." 

The great day of judgment ends with the close of the one 
thousand years. Jesus, accompanied by all the redeemed 
saints, and attended by a host of heavenly angels, then re- 
turns to this earth. Speaking of that time, Zech. 14:5 says, 
1 'The Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee." 
It is then that the wicked dead are called forth by the voice 
of the Son of God, as we read in Rev. 20:5, ''But the rest of 
the dead [the wicked] lived not again until the thousand 
years were finished." That mighty host, numberless as the 
sands of the seashore, come up from their graves as they went 
down, bearing the same feeble, sickly bodies. Many of them 
had died while cursing the name of God, others had gone 
down thirsting for power and fame. They all come up filled 
with the same evil spirit that possessed them at death. 

Speaking of the return of Christ to this earth, Zech. 14 :4, 9, 
further says, "And His feet shall stand in that day upon the 
Mount of Olives, . . . and the Mount . . . shall 
cleave in the midst thereof, . . . and there shall be a very 
great valley." "And the Lord shall be King over all the 
earth; in that day shall there be one Lord, and His name one." 
This part of the earth will then be purified by the mighty 
power of God. Then comes the fulfillment of Rev. 21 :2, 10, 
"And I John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down 
from God out of heaven." "And He carried me away in the 
spirit, . . . and showed me that great city, the holy Jeru- 
salem descending out of heaven from God." 

The city of God, the New Jerusalem, is now seen in all its 
grandeur and glory, descending from God out of heaven, com- 
ing down through the open space in Orion, and settling down 
upon the plain prepared for it. Jesus and His redeemed saints 
now enter it. All the inhabitants of the world, both the saved 
and the lost, bow before Jesus; the righteous through love 



206 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

and reverence, and the wicked because they then see for the 
first time that- God is indeed just, even in their own destruc- 
tion. Thus "every knee shall bow and every tongue confess 
that Jesus Christ is Lord of all, to the glory of God the 
Father." Phil. 2:10, 11. 

During the thousand years Satan is bound by being con- 
fined to this earth and having no one to deceive; but at the 
end of that time, according to Rev. 20:3, 7, 8, he is to be 
loosed a little season, and go out to "deceive the nations [who 
have just been raised] in the four quarters of the earth, . . . 
to gather them together to battle, the number of whom is as 
the sands of the sea." What then follows has been described 
in the following words : 

"Satan consults with his angels, and then with these 
kings and conquerors and mighty men. They look upon the 
strength and number on their side, and declare that the army 
within the city is small in comparison with theirs, and that it 
can be overcome. They lay their plans to take possession of 
the riches and glory of the New Jerusalem. All immediately 
begin to prepare for battle. Skillful artisans construct im- 
plements of war. Military leaders famed for their success, 
marshall the throng of warlike men into companies and 
divisions. 

"At last the order to advance is given, and the countless 
host move on, — an army such as was never summoned by 
earthly conquerors, such as the combined forces of all ages 
since war began on earth could never equal. Satan, the 
mightiest of warriors, leads the van, and his angels unite 
their forces for this final struggle. Kings and warriors are 
in his train, and the multitudes follow in vast companies, 
each under its appointed leader. With military precision, the 
serried ranks advance over the earth's broken and uneven 
surface to the city of God. By command of Jesus, the gates 
of the New Jerusalem are closed, and the armies of Satan sur- 
round the city, and make ready for the onset." 

Just as the final blow is about to be struck by Satan and 
his vast army, comes the fulfillment of Rev. 20:9. "And they 
went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp 
of the saints about, and the beloved city ; and fire came down 
from God out of heaven, and devoured them." 

This scene is also described in Mai. 4:1: "For, behold, the 
day cometh, that shall burn as an oven ; and all the proud, yea, 
and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble ; and the day that 
cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it 
shall leave them neither root nor branch." 

Here the figure of a tree with root and branches is intro- 
duced. Satan is the root, and the wicked are the branches. 



THE EARTH MADE NEW 207 

The final scene is described by John, the revelator, in Rev. 
20:14, 15: "And death and hell [the grave] were cast into 
the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was 
not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of 
fire." 



THE EARTH MADE NEW 

Says Solomon, "Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed 
in the earth; much more the wicked and the sinner." Prov. 
11 :31. Referring to the earth's destruction by fire, Peter says, 
1 ' The elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also, and 
the works that are therein shall be burned up." 2 Pet. 3:10. 
Obadiah says of the wicked that "they shall be as though they 
had not been." Obad. 16. This forever precludes the idea of 
an eternally burning hell. 

The earth having been renovated by fire, and the wicked 
having been destroyed, the time comes for the saints to inherit 
the earth, as promised by Christ in Matt. 5:5: "Blessed are 
the meek; for they shall inherit the earth." John, the revela- 
tor, says, "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the 
first heaven and the first earth were passed away. ' ' Rev. 21 :1. 
And Revelation 21:5 says, "Behold, I make all things new." 
In Isa. 65:17 we read, "For, behold, I create new heavens and 
a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered, nor 
come into mind." 

Speaking further of the new earth, Isaiah says, "And 
they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant 
vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, 
and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat; 
for as the days of a tree are the days of My people, and Mine 
elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. The wolf and 
the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like 
the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat. They shall 
not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, saith the Lord. ' ' 
Isa. 65: 21, 22, 25. 

A further description by the prophet of conditions in the 
new earth is contained in Isa. 35:5, 6: "Then the eyes of the 
blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be un- 
stopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the 
tongue of the dumb sing; for in the wilderness shall waters 
break out, and streams in the desert." 

The prophet says further: "The parched ground shall be- 
come a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water. . . . 



208 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be 
called The way of holiness ; the unclean shall not pass over it ; 
. . . nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon. . . . 
And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion 
with songs, and everlasting joy upon their heads; they shall 
obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee 
away." Isa. 35:7-10. 

We are soon to exchange worlds. Already we are treading 
on the borders of the better land. Whether we are preparing 
to inhabit that land should be a matter of serious import to 
every one. 



THE NEW JERUSALEM 

On line A of the chart, at the intersection of lines 29 and 
30, will be seen an illustration of THE NEW JERUSALEM, 
THE CAPITOL OF THE NEW EARTH. 

"Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is 
Mount Zion, . . . the city of the great King." Ps. 48:2. 
The New Jerusalem is the city here referred to, as it is the only 
one ever spoken of in connection with the new earth. In this 
Scripture it is also called "Mount Zion." Verse 12 continues, 
"Walk about Zion [the New Jerusalem], and go round about 
her: tell the TOWERS thereof. Mark ye well her bulwarks, 
consider her palaces." David in Ps. 122:3, says, "Jerusalem 
is builded as a city that is compact together." 

"Without doubt the Great Architect of the universe will con- 
veniently fill the New Jerusalem with a great variety of beau- 
tiful buildings, palaces, and towers, and there will be seen the 
most elaborate kind of architectural designs. 

Says the Revelator : " And he carried me away in the 
Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that 
great city, the holy Jerusalem, decending out of heaven from 
God, having the glory of God, and her light was like unto a 
stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal : 
and had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and 
at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which 
are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: 
on the east, three gates; on the north, three gates; on the 
south, three gates; on the west, three gates. And the walls 
of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of 
the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And he that talked with 
me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates 
thereof, and the walls thereof. And the city lieth four- 



THE NEW JERUSALEM 209 

square, and the length is as large as the breadth; and he 
measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. 
The length, and the breadth, and the height of it are equal.' ' 
Rev. 21 :10-16. 

In these verses we have a vivid description of the city. In 
verse eleven the statement is made that it possesses the glory 
of God, and that the light is like unto a stone most precious, 
even like a jasper stone clear as crystal. 

The city has a wall great and high. There are twelve gates, 
three on each side, the city being laid out in a perfect square. 
The measure of the city, John declares, is twelve thousand fur- 
longs. Reckoning eight furlongs to a mile, the entire distance 
around the city would be fifteen hundred miles, or three hun- 
dred and seventy-five miles on a side, covering a larger area 
than England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, or larger than the 
states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois combined. Compared with 
this, such cities as London, Paris, and New York City sink into 
insignificance. .Indeed, its size must necessarily be great, as 
all the nations of the saved are to bring their honor and glory 
into it, and meet here from one new moon to another, and from 
one Sabbath to another to worship God. Isa. 66 :22, 23. 

The statement is made that the length and breadth and 
height of it are "equal." The word equal may be used to 
convey proportion, this indicating that the height will be pro- 
portionate to its length and breadth. This idea is sustained by 
the fact that the wall is only one hundred and forty-four cubits 
high. Rev. 21 :17. The ancient cubit was reckoned at twenty- 
two inches. Thus the wall, according to this measurement, 
would be two hundred and sixty-four feet high. * 

The prophet, in further description, says: "And the build- 
ing of the wall of it was of jasper ; and the city was pure gold, 
like unto clear glass. ' ' Verse 18. 

THE TWELVE FOUNDATIONS 

Rev. 21:14 says, "And the walls of the city had twelve 
foundations. ' ' Each foundation appears to be a separate stone, 
as they are mentioned as such in verses 19, 20 as follows: "The 
first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, 
chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald," etc. 

Builders, in laying the foundation for great pillars or walls, 
almost invariably make the foundation thicker or wider than 
the pillars or walls themselves, and often the foundations 
are made of heavy, flat stones, each tier of stone, in the ascent, 



210 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

receding slightly from the one below it. This is illustrated in 
the walls of the New Jerusalem in the design on the chart. 

Again, by each different colored foundation-stone receding 
from the one below it, the beauty of the whole foundation 
would be very much enhanced. For the blending together of 
the different colored rays of light, emanating from the stones 
themselves, and reflecting back upon the one below it, as well 
as the sun shining upon them, and the still brighter light of 
the glory of God shining through them altogether, would pro- 
duce a beauty and grandeur that no mortal tongue could de- 
scribe, or artist portray. Nothing but the language of Canaan 
can ever tell of the glories of that magnificent foundation. 

"And the foundations of the wall of the city were gar- 
nished with all manner of precious stones/ ' Rev. 21:19. These 
twelve foundations have been described as follows : 

"First, Jasper. Jasper is a stone, of a beautiful sea-green; 
sometimes, however, of various colors, as purple, with red 
veins. There are many varieties. 

"Second, Sapphire. A stone of a very fine sky-blue color, 
next in hardness to the diamond, and transparent. 

"Third, Chalcedony. A species of agate or onyx of dif- 
ferent colors, the yellow and red being the most beautiful 
and valuable of its species. It is seldom discovered. 

"Fourth, Emerald. A stone of a very bright green color 
without any mixture, and is one of the most beautiful gems 
known. It is also rare. 

"Fifth, Sardonyx. A species of agate, and in color some- 
times red, and sometimes of a flesh color. 

"Sixth, Sardius or sardine stone. A precious stone of a 
blood-red color. 

"Seventh, Chrysolite. A transparent precious stone, hav- 
ing the color of gold, with a mixture of green, possessing a 
fine luster. It is sometimes termed the •' gold stone. ■ It is a 
species of the topaz. 

"Eighth, Beryl. A very hard, transparent gem of great 
luster and beauty, in color bluish green. 

"Ninth, Topaz. A highly colored gem of wine-yellow 
color, with occasional pale tinges of green or red. It was 
one of the twelve gems in the high priests' breastplate. Ex. 
39 :10. 

"Tenth, Chrysoprasus. Its color is green, inclining to gold. 
It differs from the chrysolite only in having a bluish hue. 

"Eleventh, Jacinth. A precious stone of dead red color, 
with a mixture of yellow. It is the same as the cinnamon 
stone. 

"Twelfth, Amethyst. A very beautiful gem, generally of 
a purple or violet color, composed of a strong blue and deep 
red. It is seldom uniform in color, and is generally cloudy, 
and spotted with zigzag stripes.' ' 



TREE AND RIVER OF LIFE 211 

One writer speaking of the blending of the colors in the ar- 
rangement of these stones in the wall says : 

"In looking over these various classes, we find the first 
four to be of a green or bluish cast, the fifth and sixth of a 
red or scarlet: the seventh, yellow; the eighth, ninth, and 
tenth of different shades of the lighter green; the eleventh 
and twelfth of a scarlet or splendid red. There is classifica- 
tion, therefore, in this arrangement in the rainbow, with the 
exception that it is more complex." 



THE TREE AND THE RIVER 
OF LIFE 

In the closing chapter of the Bible we find a description of 
the tree of life and the river of life, which are in the paradise 
of God. The prophet says, "And He showed me a pure river 
of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne 
of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and 
on either side of the river, was' there the tree of life, which 
bare twelve manner of fruit, and yielded her fruit every 
month ; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the 
nations. " Rev. 22:1,2. 

The tree of life is in the midst of the street ; or, as Mur- 
dock's translation of the Syriac New Testament reads, "Id 
the middle of the broad avenue ; ' ' and it is also on either side 
of the river of life. The throne of God is at the head of this 
broad way. 

Thus the tree of life grows intp a magnificent arch over 
that wonderful stream, spreading its branches far on every 
side. We cannot suppose the tree to be diminutive, or the 
street and the river to be narrow. The tree must be suffi- 
ciently large to supply all the redeemed, as they come up to 
partake of its fruit once a month. It bears twelve kinds of 
fruit, and "yielded her fruit every month," probably a 
different kind each month. This would suggest the gathering 
of general assemblies in the city from time to time. The 
prophet Isaiah, speaking of the future world, says: "For as 
the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall 
remain before Me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your 
name remain. And it shall come to pass that from one new 
moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all 
flesh come to worship before Me, saith the Lord." Isa. 66:22, 
23. Thus there will be weekly and monthly assemblies in that 
better land. 

The Lord plainly tells who can have the blessed privilege 



212 THE STORY OF THE AGES 

of eating the, fruit of life 's fair tree, and of entering a city 
where death and sorrow will never be known; for, He says, 
" Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may 
have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the 
gates into the city." Rev. 22:14. 



CONCLUSION 

The long and eventful history of this world, as briefly por- 
trayed in "THE STORY OF THE AGES," and pictured on 
"THE HISTORIC AND PROPHETIC DIAGRAM OP THE 
WORLD, ' ' is now drawing to its close. 

The plan of salvation, devised in eternity to save any who 
might become transgressors of the law of God, will soon have 
accomplished its purpose. The long, dark night of sin, caused 
by the disobedience of our first parents, will soon come to its 
end, and the eternal day will burst upon the redeemed, with 
all its glorious realities. 

The prophet, describing the glories of the earth, in its final 
restitution, says : ' ' The wilderness and the solitary place shall 
be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom 
as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with 
joy and singing; the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto 
it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the 
glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God. . . . 
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the 
deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an 
hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness 
shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. . . . 
And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion 
with songs, and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall 
obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee 
away." Isaiah 35. 

The prophet Isaiah, again speaking of this same time, says : 
"Moreover, the light of the moon shall be as the light of the 
sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light 
of seven days, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breach 
of His people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.' ' Isa. 
30:26. 

The rays of the sun are the medium through which God 
works to bring out the great variety of shades and colors seen 
in the flowers of the garden, the leaves of the trees, and the 
grass of the field; and as the sun is to shine with sevenfold 
more brilliancy, therefore every green leaf, every blooming 



CONCLUSION 213 



flower, and every blade of grass, will greet the eye with seven- 
fold more beauty, grace, and glory than they do in the world 
today. 

The new earth will be arrayed with a beauty and grandeur 
which no language can fully describe. Each scene will be 
robed in its own peculiar freshness and glory, and will present 
a new picture at every turn. The artist will never lack for 
subjects to sketch, nor the lover of nature for themes of con- 
templation. "The wide spreading plain will swell into hills 
of beauty, and the mountains of God rear their lofty summits 
toward heaven. And among those hills and on those lovely 
plains, God's redeemed people, so long pilgrims and strangers 
in a sinful world, will find an eternal HOME." JESUS WILL 
BE THE KING OF THAT COUNTRY. The radiance of His 
beaming countenance will be the joy and delight of the count- 
less millions who have been redeemed from sin, and changed 
from mortality to immortality. 

THE PROBLEM OF EVIL HAS BEEN SOLVED. SIN 
AND SINNERS ARE NO MORE. GOD'S UNIVERSE 
IS CLEAN. PEACE, JOY, AND HAPPINESS REIGN 
THROUGHOUT THE VAST CREATION. There will be ful- 
filled the words of the Revelator, as he looked forward to this 
blessed time: "And every creature which is in heaven, and 
on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, 
and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honor, 
and glory, and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the 
throne, and unto the Lamb forever and ever." Rev. 5:13. 
"We speak of the realms of the blest, 

That country so bright and so fair, 
And oft are its glories confessed, — 

But what must it be to be there ! 
We speak of its pathway of gold, 

Its wall decked with jewels so rare, 
Its wonders and pleasures untold, — 

But what must it be to be there ! 

"Do thou, midst temptation and woe, 

For heaven my spirit prepare; 
And shortly I also shall know, 

And feel what it is to be there. 
Then o'er the bright fields we shall roam, 

In glory celestial and fair, 
With saints and with angels at home, 

And Jesus Himself shall be there." 



214 



THE STORY OF THE AGES 



All are invited to share in the glories of that better land. 
The Holy Spirit speaking through the prophet says: "Ho, 
every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that 
hath no money, come ye, buy and eat ; yea come, buy wine and 
milk without money and without price.' ' "Incline your ear, 
and come unto Me ; hear, and your soul shall live. ,, Isa. 55 :1, 3. 
"And the Spirit and the bride say Come. And let him that 
heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. AND 
WHOSOEVER WILL, LET HIM TAKE THE WATER OF 
LIFE FREELY." Rev. 22:17. 



END 




GENERAL INDEX 



215 



GENERAL INDEX 



A 



BEL, killed his brother, 54 
Adam, created in God's image, 
24 

begat Seth, 24 

fall of, 38 

free moral agent, 38, 45 

and the tree of life, 44, 45 

kept the Sabbath, 44 

visited by angels, 44 

little less than angels, 44 

was to study universe, 45 

promised knowledge if loyal, 45 

loyalty tested, 45 

on probation, 45 

not deceived, 5 1 

excused his sin, 51 

driven from the garden, 51, 71 

contemporary with Methuselah, 
59 

witnessed the results of sin, 59 

separated from God, 38 

created upright, 45 

broke the commandments, 70 
Ages, council of, 35 
Alexander marched 5,100 miles, 102 

22 years after death empire di- 
vided, 102 
American Sabbath Union, 172, 173, 
181 

and Cardinal Gibbons, 173 

and Catholics, 174 
Angels, fallen, 29, 41 

do His commandments, 30 

free moral agents, 37, 40 

governed by law, 31 

excel in strength, 30 

invisible, 49 

and their work, 131 

encampeth round about, 132 

delivered Peter, 132 

are symbolical, 163 

first message, 164 

second message, 164, 165 

third message, 166 

are judged, 202 
Antediluvians without books, 59 
Apostasy, another step in, 155 

beginning of, 154 

continued, 156 
Arcturus, central sun, 19 
Ark, in sanctuary, 25 

covered by cherubim, 25 
Astronomy, Bible, 18 

Steele on, 20 

modern, 22 



B 



ABYLON, Empire, 90 
founded by Nimrod, 90 
brief history of, 91 
in field of prophecy, 91, 94 



description of, 94 

taken, 96 
Beast, two-horned, 160, 162 

United States, 160, 162 

came out of earth, 161 

unparalleled progress, 161 

came out of vacancy, 161 

horns like lamb, 161 

working miracles, 162 

and mark, 171 
Blood, regulated by power of God, 38 
Book, of records, 203 

of remembrance, 204 

CATHOLICS, and Arian Kings, 
105 
and little horn, 106 

instructed to take part in poli- 
tics, 172 
Center of universe, 19 
Ceremonial law, contrasted, 82 

what men say about it, 84 
Character of God, 26 

developed, 36, 40 
Chart, condensed, 12 

in detail, 16 
Christ, Creator of worlds, 21, 36 

Creator of all things, 36, 52 

laid aside divine power, 53 

full of grace, 52 

represents Father to universe, 53 

laid aside Himself, 53 

Prince of Peace, 53 
' God manifested in, 53 

to reconcile world to God, 53 

hung on the cross, 53, 142, 145 

the law in action, 87 

the final Conqueror, 89, 145 

takes possession of His kingdom, 

a High Priest, 54 
90 

and Pharisees, 137, 138, 139, 141 

Lord of the Sabbath, 137, 139 

miracles of, 138 

idea of Sabbath keeping, 139 

persecuted, 139, 140 

in the cornfield, 140 

enters the synagogue, 140 

suffered the second death, 142 

takes upon Himself our nature, 
143 

prays three times, 143 

betrayed, 144 

and Pilot, 144 

our Substitute, 144 

died for the universe, 145 

proved God's justice and mercy, 
146 

the central figure, 146, 147 

ascension, 147, 148 



216 



GENERAL INDEX 



Commandments stand fast forever, 
30 

moral principle in, 32 

to restore and build Jerusalem, 
121 
Constantine, 14 

and edict of Milan, 157 

and the bishops, 157 
Council, of the ages, 35 

of Nice, 157, 158 
Covenant, 75 

first definition, 76 

second definition, 76 

third definition, 77 

people pledge to keep, 78 

ratification of, 78, 79 

meaning of, 79 

broken by people, 79 

object of, 79, 80 

new or second, 80, 8 1 

law basis of, 81 

old ratified first, 81 

new ratified second, 81 

new given to patriarchs, 82 
Cover, described, 10 
Created, man, 43, 44 
Creation, love manifested in, 26 

of our world, 42, 43, 44, 46 

of man in God's image, 43 

universe and its inhabitants, 36 

to Sinai, 70 
Curse, double resting, 55 
Cyrus, conquered Babylon, 95 

in prophecy, 95 

and annual festival, 96 

captured city, 96 

DANIEL, symbols of, 12 
the prophet, 92 
recognized by Christ, 92 

died, 92 

four beasts of, 99 

vision of, 99 

fainted, 118 
Days, 2300, 117, 118, 120, 123, 164 

not literal, 119 

ended, 123, 124 

long or short, 32 
Day, dark, 189, 190 
Death, result of sin, 39 

first, 200 

second, 205 
Decree, of Justinian, 106 
Determined, meaning of, 119 
Diagram, to understand, 10 
Divine plan of ages, 33 
Dotted lines described, 1 1 
Dragon, great red, 112, 150, 151, 152 

EASTERN question, 14 
Eden, beautiful at creation, 44 
two trees in garden, 44 
garden planted in, 44 
End, known from beginning, 34 
Enoch translated, 55 
Eternity, of past, 11, 13, 33 



of future, 15 

salvation planned in, 33 

decree ratified in, 36 
Eternal purpose, 33, 35 
Evil, permitted to come to matur- 
ity, 42 
Evolution, 43 
Eye, avenue to mind, 9 

FALL, of man, 48 
expected, 35 
__ First cover, 10 
Flammarion, Camille, 20, 22 
Flood, wickedness before, 55 
a double curse on earth, 55 
great variety of fruit before, 55 
trees hard as stone before, 55, 56 
Noah preached 120 years before, 

56 
no rain before, 56 
description of condition before, 57 
people's probation closed, 57 
love and justice demanded de- 
struction, 58 
life lessened after, 59 
Shem lived 502 years after, 59 
description of, 61 
after, 63 

Chaldean description of, 64 to 67 
Foreknowledge of God, 42 
Free moral agent, 36, 37 
Future, eternity of, 15 

GABRIEL, Daniel recognized, 118 
made Daniel understand, 118 
Generations, 47, 192 
Geology, 46 
God, a person, 23, 24, 25 

throne of, 17, 25 

habitation of, 25 

in the sanctuary, 25 

character of, 26 

Architect and Builder, 26 

foreknowledge of, 34, 35 

eternal purpose of, 33, 35 

all life from, 37, 38 

family name, 52 

in Christ reconciling world, 53 

manifested in Christ, 53 
Government, without law, 42 
Grecia, third kingdom, 97, 101 

Alexander's death, 102 

divided, 102, 111, 112 

stood, 102 

history of, 111 

HEAVENS, grandeur of, 20 
heaven of, 21 
wonders of, 22 
three, 19 
Heaven, was in, 42 

Satan cast out of, 42 
History, of the world to flood, 54 
Historic diagram, 12 
Holy Spirit, illustrations of, 11 
and His work, 125 



GENERAL INDEX 



217 



a person, 125, 126 

third person, 126, 135 

divine, 127 

and trinity, 127, 128, 134 

power and work, 128 

work in creation of this world 
129, 132 

creation of universe, 129, 130 

hath garnished the heavens, 130 

Spurgeon on the, 130, 136 

everywhere, 130 

and our thoughts, 131 

illustration of work of, 131 

in old dispensation, 133 

fruits of, 133 

in birth of Christ and John, 133 

in life of Christ, 134 

in baptism of Christ, 134 

Christ's representative, 135 

the Comforter, 135 

the Vicar of Christ, 136 

in the resurrection, 136 

in the plan of salvation, 132 
Horn, the little, 106, 112, 113 

prophecy of, 107 

time existed, 108 

supremacy of, 108 

of Daniel, 8, 109 
Host, of heaven, 21, 22 
Hough, Prof. Geo. W., on astron- 
omy, 22 

Illustrations; Adam and 
Matthew, 60 

Image, of Daniel, 2, 92, 100 

seen by Nebuchadnezzar, 93 

head of gold, 94 

to the beast, 169 

in the United States, 169 

of first beast, 170 

man created in God's, 24 
Inhabited worlds, 20, 21, 22 
Inhabitants, tested, 40 

JERUSALEM, taken by Nebu- 
chadnezzar, 88 
restored and builded, 121 
new, 208 

twelve foundations of, 209, 210 
Jesus, and object lessons, 9 

baptized, 122 
Judgment does not follow at once, 5 1 
hour, 124 
time of, 124, 201 
Jupiter, habitability of, 22 
always spring, 22 

LANGUAGE confounded, 68 
transcript of His character, 
27,28 
Law of God, 13 
universal, 29, 31 
existed before the world, 31 
perfect, 29 
complete, 30 
perpetual, 30 



in the heavenly Sanotuary, 30 

in force, 30 

founded upon the nature of God, 
31 

given on Sinai, 74 

a covenant, 76, 77, 78 

conditions of covenant, 78 

universal for all, 82 

compared with His character, 83 

what men say about it, 83, 84 

and gospel, 85 

blended with love, 85 

and gospel inseparable, 86 

love foundation of, 86 

manifested in Christ, 87 

magnified, 137 

Sunday, 159 
Letters and lines described, 1 1 
Life from God, 37, 38 
Locomotive, compared to man, 37 
Love, manifested in creation, 26 

foundation of law, 86 
Lucifer, sins, 40 

first covering cherub, 40 

perfect until he sinned, 40 

gradually sinned, 40 
Luther, Martin, on Law of God, 31 

MAN, created in God's image, 
24, 36, 43 
created a free moral agent, 
36, 37, 39, 77 
condemned for unbelief, 50 
a machine, 39 

the crowning work of creation, 
43, 44 
Mars, inhabited, 22 
Medo-Persia, second kingdom, 94, 
. 100, 109 
war with Babylon, 95 
represented by bear, 101 
Mohammedanism, in prophecy, 181 

to 185 
Messiah, the Prince, 122 

the annointed, 122, 124 
Message, third angel's, 163, 166, 170 
first angel's, 164 
second angel's, 164, 165 
threefold, 166 
Methuselah, to flood, 59 

and Shem, 61 
Millennium, 15, 199, 200, 202 
Moral principle in Sabbath, 31 
Mystery, kept in silence, 34 
Mysteries, pagan and heathen, 154 
Lord's supper, 154 

NATIONS, origin of, 69 
National Reform Association, 
170, 171 
object of, 171 
and W. C. T. U., 172 
like papacy, 172 
and Catholics, 172 
in politics, 172 
New earth, 207,, 208, 211,212,213, 214 



218 



GENERAL INDEX 



New Jerusalem, 208, 209, 210 
Noah, built an ark, 56 

pleaded with people, 56 

ridiculed by scientific men, 56 

and people knew nothing about 
rain, 56 

said it would rain in 7 days, 57 

days of, 55 

preached 120 years, 56 

in the ark, 57 

OBJECT lessons, value of, 9 
used by Jesus, 9 
endorsed by Holy Spirit, 10 
Other worlds inhabited, 20, 22, 32, 40 

PAPACY, 14, 151 
image of, 14 
reached its supremacy, 152, 159 

and little horn, 152, 153 

diagram of, 153 

and mystery of iniquity, 154 

and heathen ceremonies, 154 

development of, 156 

and Constantine, 156 

seeds of, 159 

grew, 159 

waning, 159 
Past, eternity of, 1 1 
Patriarchal, history, 13, 58 
Perpetuity, of law, 30 
Personality, of God, 23, 24, 25 

of Holy Spirit, 125, 126 
Plain, upon tables, 10> 
Plan of salvation, 13, 33, 34, 35 

in eternity, 33 

not an afterthought, 35 

in action, 52 

the little word, 34 

wonderful, 35 
Planets, inhabited, 23 
Pope, titles of, 106 

taken prisoner, 108 
Power, of God. in nature, 37 
Probation, on all created beings, 49 

Adam and Eve on, 45 

closed, 56 
Prophetic periods, 14, 117 

time of, 108 

1260 days, 153 
Purpose and grace, 34 

eternal, 33, 34, 35 

according to His own, 35 

RACE, origin of, 48 
Rain, early, or day of 
Pentecost, 148, 149, 150 
latter, 185, 186 
diagram of latter, 186 
Spurgeon on latter, 187, 188 
Reflection of Divine Character, 26 
Resurrection, first, 193, 197, 198, 199, 
200 
second, 205, 206 
Revelation, symbols of, 12, 15 
Revolving around throne, 17, 18 



Rome, fourth Kingdom, 97, 102 
universal, 97 
legs of iron, 97 
and arms of republic, 97 
filled the world, 97, 98 
beginning with Christian era, 98 
divided, 98, 103 
strong as iron, 98 
passed away, 98 
break in pieces, 99 
continued, 103 
ten kingdoms of, 103, 104 
three kingdoms plucked up, 105 

SABBATH, in eternity, 13 
in Eden, 13 
reform, 13, 70 

moral principle in, 31 

kept in other worlds, 32 

seventh day, 32, 44 

from even to even, 32 

before this world, 44 

kept by other worlds when it 
comes to them, 32 

seal of God, 31, 168 

guide when to commence, 32 

Christ Lord of, 137 

lead to study of, 167 

hidden by Satan, 168, 169 
Sabbath reform, 13, 17 

in Egypt, 71 

by Children of Israel, 72, 73 

in wilderness, 7 

by Christ, 136, 137 

last days, 168, 169 
Sabbath keeping, Christ's idea of, 139 
Salvation, plan of, 13, 33, 34, 35 

in action, 52 

God and Christ authors of, 52 
Sanctuary, God's dwelling place, 25 

built by Moses, 25 

two apartments, 25 

in heaven, 25, 115, 117,167 

and its cleansing, 113, 115, 116, 
124,164 

earthly, 113, 114 

furniture, 114 
Satan, cast to earth, 21 

visits other worlds, 21 

fall of, 29, 40 

cast out of heaven, 42, 49 

not destroyed, why ? 42 

hid the Sabbath, 168, 169 

used serpent as mouthpiece, 49 

on probation, 49 

is invisible to man, 49 

preached first sermon, 50 

sinned, 29 

angels fell with him, 41 

called great dragon, 42 

cast out of heaven, 42 

character not known till death of 
Christ, 145 
Scientists, so-called, 47 
Scripture, literal, 99 
Sea, definition of, 100 



GENERAL INDEX 



219 



Seal of God, part of law, 31 

Shem, lived 502 years after flood, 59 

contemporary with Adam, 60 
Signs of Christ's second coming, 188, 
180, 190 

in falling of stars, 190, 191 

in moon, 191 

in sixth seal, 191 

in last generation, 192 

an ancient belief, 193 

New Testament doctrine, 194 

manner of, 194 

by eminent divines, 195, 196 

in parting of heavens, 197 

and clearing of atmosphere, 198, 
199 
Sin, entered universe, 29, 39 

without excuse, 39 

future possibility prevented, 42 

enters this world, 53 

transgression of law, 39 

no reason for, 39 

definition, 39 
Solar system, 17 
Space, immensity of, 16 
Spurgeon, on law of God, 30 
Stars, God guides them, 37 

falling of, 190,191 
Sunday, origin of, 13 

bond between Catholicism and 
Protestantism, 14 

laws, 159 

ancient and modern, 179, 180 

diagram, 180, 181 
Sun, size of, 17 

worship, 155 

darkened, 189, 192 

sevenfold, 212 

colors flowers, 212 
Suns, groups of, 17 

revolving, 17 
Supreme Court decision, 174 to 177 
Symbols of Daniel and Rev., 12, 15 

TABERNACLE, and law, 13 
Tables, made plain upon, 10 
Temptation and fall, 48 
Ten Commandments, 30 
in all ages, 30 
every part of universe, 30 
Ten kingdoms, 14 
Test, of loyalty, 40, 45 
Theocracy, of Israel, 88 
beginning of, 88 
overturned, 89 
ended, 89 



Thousand-year periods, 12 
Three angel's messages, 13 
Three heavens, 19 

Throne of God, center of universe, 
17,18 

in the heavens, 19 

living, 25 
Timeline, 11, 12 
Times eternal, 33, 35 
Tower of Babel, 67 
Tree of knowledge, forbidden fruit, 

49,50 
Tree of life, 44, 50, 211 

Adam not permitted to eat of 
and died, 44 
Trees, great size, 47, 48 

majestic, 55 
Trolley illustration, 38 
Trumpets, described, 181 to 183 
Two covenants, 75 

UNITED STATES, in prophecy, 
160 
coming from vacancy, 161 
called Christian nation, 175 
Universe, wonders of, 16 
center of, 18 
grandeur of, 26 
creation of, 36 
sin entered, 29, 39 

WAR, in heaven, 42 
Week, literal, 45, 46, 47 
of creation not long period, 47 
false logic of, 48 
true science in harmony with 

meaning, 48 
seventy, 119, 120, 121, 123 
sixty-two, 122 
Wesley, John, on law of God, 30, 31 
Whirlwind, great, 99 
Wire, trolley illustration, 38 
Wicked destroyed, 206, 207 
World, beautiful at creation, 43 

only one entered by sin, 82 
Worlds, inhabited, 20, 21, 22, 23, 32 

created by Christ, 21 
Write it on tablets, 10 
Worship of sun, by eastern nations, 
155 
of the beast, 163 



Y 



EARS, in advance, 23 

day for a, 108 

2300, 117, 118 
490, 122 
457 began in the spring, 123 



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with our Lord's great prophecy, given while viewing Jerusalem from the 
Mount of Olives, this book outlines the history of the whole dispensation 
down to the time when "sin and sinners are no more; God's entire uni- 
verse is clean; and the great controversy is forever ended." Over 700 
pages, and 40 illustrations. The work is handsomely printed and bound. 

Cloth, marbled edges $3.00 

Half morocco, marbled edges 4.00 

Full morocco, marbled edges 5.00 

Printed on thin paper, with few illustrations, plain 
edges 2.00 

Also issued in Danish, Swedish, German, and French. 



JUL 30 1912 



Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: May 2005 

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